All-American Cleaning & Restoration Athlete of the Week – Giada Bertagnolli – Oct. 1, 2026

RIGBY, Idaho – Rigby High School senior Giada Bertagnolli is committed to continue her volleyball and academic careers at the U.S. Air Force Academy. Bertagnolli has played a key role in the team's success, while also maintaining a 4.0 GPA, putting the "athlete" in "student-athlete". For that, she is our All-American Cleaning & Restoration Athlete of the Week.

According to MaxPreps, she has registered 269 kills, 77 digs, and a .238 hitting percentage this season, with the team's only two losses coming against Madison High School.

“It's a great group of girls,” Bertagnolli said. “I love everyone on the team, and we have a great vibe on the court with each other... I feel like it's been a pretty good season.”

Bertagnolli, a senior on this Rigby team, adapted to a new role on the court this year after switching to outside hitter. She previously played as a right-side hitter during her sophomore and junior years and served as a middle blocker during her freshman year.

“It's been kind of a cool season for me,” Bertagnolli said. “I haven't played a lot of outside hitter, so I switched. I played right-side hitter my sophomore and junior year. I was a middle my freshman year. So it's a new position for me to play. So it's been kind of a cool learning experience for me.”

Bertagnolli's pathway to the U.S. Air Force Academy began unexpectedly in May when she received an email regarding a college experience camp. Although she and her family were initially hesitant, Giada became convinced to attend and went with her father.

“Air Force, I never really thought about it,” Bertagnolli said. “My parents weren't super like into that. But I joked and I sent it to them and I was like, 'I should go to this,' and then I kind of start thinking and I was like, 'maybe I should go to this!' So I told my dad and we ended up going.”

During the camp, an Air Force coach expressed strong interest in her athletic ability. Roughly two months later, Bertagnolli received a formal scholarship offer while traveling.

“I got on a couple calls with [the coach] and, I was in New York City on a bench in the middle of, like, a park and I was on the phone with her and she offered me and I accepted it,” Bertagnolli said. “So it was a really cool experience.”

Attending a military service academy comes with an active duty service requirement, and Bertagnolli has outlined plans to pursue a career in medicine. She aims to secure one of the competitive medical track positions offered at the academy.

“At Air Force, there's about 20 doctor slots per class,” Bertagnolli said. “So, for me, that looks like just trying to get my generals for medicine done and trying to get one of those doctor slots. And then if I can, then they'll say, okay, go ahead, go to med school. And then after that, I can serve my active duty as a medic in the Air Force.”