Bush family ends long run

The Bush family first made a splash on the local volleyball scene 12 years ago.

That’s when the eldest of three sisters – Shayla Bush – began competing in the Pacific Northwest Qualifier. That was in 1997, and since then at least one of the sisters – Shayla, Ivy and Oceana – has competed in the annual tournament each year.

“Oh my gosh, I remember being at the tournament and watching my sisters when I was too young to play,” baby sister Oceana said. “There was always a volleyball in my hand. I was peppering with my sisters every chance I got between their games and I just followed them around begging them to play volleyball with me. I just loved it.

“I could watch volleyball from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. and not get bored.”

For quite some time now, Oceana hasn’t just been watching. This weekend the family tradition officially comes to an end when the Lewis and Clark senior and the Spokane Splash U-18 team compete for a coveted slot at the Junior Olympics – the pinnacle of junior volleyball in the United States – this summer in Miami.

Oceana’s team accomplished the feat last year when it won the Open Gold bracket at last year’s PNQ – which began this year with the younger divisions playing last weekend and resumed Friday with the U-16, U-17 and U-18 divisions. The tournament, which is being played at Eastern Washington University and the Spokane Convention Center, wraps up on Sunday.

“That’s so weird to hear,” Oceana said when asked how it felt for her junior career to be coming to its end. “When you’re little you always plan things out, and it just always seemed like senior year was so far away.”

All three of the Bush sisters have competed in the PNQtournament since Shayla began the tradition in 1997 – which was the year of the first PNQ in Spokane. Shayla was a sophomore at Ferris (the Saxons also won the State 4A title that year) and played club volleyball for the U-16 Splash. Shayla’s teams never did qualify for the Junior Olympics and upon graduation Shayla went on to play for and graduate from Rutgers University.

The family tradition continued with middle sister Ivy, who played – like Oceana – at LC. Ivy, who also spent her club volleyball years with the Splash, never played on a Junior Olympic-qualifying team or won a state title, but she did earn a scholarship to Morgan State University and is currently a junior.

Last, but certainly not least, came Oceana, who has won both a state title and played on a team that went to the Junior Olympics. She will also continue to follow in her sister’s footsteps next year when she plays college volleyball, as she recently signed to play for Washington State University – a step that she is looking forward to taking.

“I feel like I’ve learned so much since I was young,” she said. “I’ve come across lot of good coaches, learned a lot on and off the court, and I’ve still got a couple months left in club so there is still a lot to learn and get better at. But when the time comes I think I’ll be ready to go, knowing that I’ve had a lot of fun with volleyball and the friends I’ve made and the coaches I’ve played for.”

The most important things she has learned – which comes as no surprise – are the lessons that her family has taught her. One, she said, in particular stands out as the most important.

“My family is extremely close and there is something that my parents always told to us – and I’ve heard it every time I’ve played since I was 8 years old,” Oceana said. “My dad always says ‘What’s the first thing you do?’ and the answer is to have fun – that’s always been the motto in my family. That’s the biggest thing I’ve taken away.

“If you have fun everything else comes together.”

Notes

Mead junior Alexis Olgard, who plays with Bush on Spokane Splash’s 18’s team and has orally committed to play at the University of Southern California, was at the USA Volleyball High Performance tryouts on Thursday at Eastern Washington University and is hoping to be selected for the second straight year as one of the top 19 players in the country and earn a chance to make the USA Volleyball national team. She made the cut last year as a sophomore. Of the 19 players selected from across the country last year, she earned the No. 13 position. The top 12 became team members of the USA National Team. … The PNQ is hosted in Spokane annually by Evergreen Region Volleyball and, with 366 teams from across the country attending, has an estimated economic impact of $3.9 million.