Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2011

Bugg named N.C. volleyball Player of the Year

Cardinal Gibbons senior Madison Bugg has been named the 2011-12 Gatorade North Carolina Volleyball Player of the Year

The award places Bugg, the 6-foot-1 outside hitter and setter who has committed to play at Stanford next year, in the running for Gatorade's National Volleyball Player of the Year award.

“It feels great to win (the award),” Bugg said.

Bugg led Crusaders (22-3) to their third consecutive N.C. High School Athletic Association 3A state title after defeating North Iredell in early November. After that match, Bugg had 11 kills and 13 digs, a performance that allowed her to be named the MVP of the tournament, an award she had won the previous two seasons.

Bugg led the Crusaders last year with 271 kills, 182 digs and 31 service aces. She also recorded a kill percentage of .445.

“She is the most talented player I’ve ever coached,” coach Logan Barber said. “She knows the game so well.”

Barber became the coach at Cardinal Gibbons two years ago. When he arrived, Barber understood Bugg was a special player.

But with just two seniors on the team that season, Barber asked Bugg to switch from setter to outside hitter, a transition Barber knew could be difficult.

Instead his star player improved.

Bugg, who at 6-foot-1, became Cardinal Gibbons’ best hitter and was able to incorporate the fundamentals she had learned as a setter.

“We asked her to change position and she was OK with it,” Barber said. “It was pretty impressive for me to see her take over that position so quickly and dominant other teams.”Bugg has maintained a 4.50 weighted GPA in the classroom. A member of Apex's St. Mary Magdalene Catholic parish, she has volunteered locally on behalf of multiple humanitarian initiatives in association with her school’s Lancer Club and has completed multiple service-mission trips in support of charity organizations in the greater Raleigh area.

“The last couple of years she got herself more in shape and her mental ability have been impressive to watch,” Barber said of Bugg. “She really made everybody else better, especially in tough situations.”