Emery High School graduate Katelyn Nielson signed a National Letter of Intent to play volleyball at Utah State University Eastern Monday evening at the Spartan Center in Castle Dale.

Nielson, Emery High School’s female athlete of the year, signed the letter of intent before her family and teammates.

“I’m excited to see where this takes me and what happens next,” said Nielson. “It’s going to be close to home, so I can visit my family. It just seems fun to go there, so I’m excited.”

Nielson, a three-sport athlete at Emery, was on the 2023 3A State Championship volleyball team. This past season, she helped the Spartans advance to the quarterfinals and earned a second-team All-State selection.

A force on the basketball court, Nielson led the Spartans with a 15.8-point-per-game average. She also paced Emery in field goal percentage (49%), rebounds per game (6.9) and free throw percentage (73%). Nielsen earned first-team All-State and Academic All-State honors while leading Emery to two straight state title appearances.

On the softball diamond, Nielson helped the Lady Spartans to a 22-13 overall record, which placed them in second place in Region 12 with a 12-2 record. She ended the season with a .350 batting average and led the team with 33 RBIs. She collected 35 hits, including 13 doubles, three triples, and five home runs.

Nielson will now shift her focus solely to volleyball, joining a USU Eastern team fresh off its most impressive season in school history. The Eagles earned their first outright Scenic West Athletic Conference title, first SWAC Region 18 Tournament Championship, first Rocky Mountain District Championship, and first automatic berth in the NJCAA Division I National Tournament.