Palo Verde volleyball player gains international experience

By Christopher Drexel

Friday, Sept. 26, 2008 | midnight

Ainsley Lovejoy is only in her junior season of high school volleyball for Palo Verde, but she already has experience playing at the international level.

Lovejoy competed for the United States during the Global Challenge July 20 to 24 in Croatia. With Lovejoy playing middle blocker, her team went 4-3 in the event.

"It was the best thing I've ever done in volleyball," Lovejoy said. "It was exciting to face girls from other countries and see the way they played."

Countries that fielded teams included Italy, Croatia, Slovenia, Montenegro, Romania, Russia and three teams from the United States. Lovejoy's team was made up of the best players from the Southern California Volleyball Association, which is affiliated with USA volleyball.

The league held tryouts last spring in Anaheim, Calif. Her regular club team, Club Vegas, regularly competes in the association.

Though Lovejoy's USA team was made up of girls born in 1991 and 1992, many of the foreign teams it faced featured players much older.

"A lot of the teams we played had girls that were up to 25," Lovejoy said. "It was a good experience because playing against older girls who are more experienced makes you feel you have to live up to them."

Her mother, Beth Lovejoy, was happy her daughter was able to compete abroad early in her volleyball career.

"As a parent, it was a privilege to have her go and play with other competitive players," Beth Lovejoy said. "She was instructed by college coaches, and hopefully the extra knowledge she gained she can bring back to her high school team."

Lovejoy spent three years living in England when she was an infant while her father was stationed in the Air Force there, but hadn't been back to Europe since.

In addition to playing volleyball, the team also spent a week sightseeing in countries Germany, Italy and Austria.

"I didn't remember anything from when I was little so I was pretty amazed," she said. "There weren't as many tall buildings and the cars were a lot smaller.."

Lovejoy added the biggest positive of competing in Croatia is the attention she is expected to get from prospective colleges by playing to America. Shortly after she returned from her trip, she had her first letter arrive in the mail. It was from Western Kentucky.

"Hopefully this experience will get me looked at by many more schools because it was a regional team and pretty hard to make," she said.

Christopher Drexel can be reached at 990-8929 or [email protected].