It won't be the first time that Madison Bugg puts on a Team USA jersey, but the experience has yet to grow old for the 15-year-old volleyball player from Apex.
Bugg, a 5-foot-11 rising junior at Cardinal Gibbons High, was recently chosen to play for the U.S. Girls' Youth Olympic Team and compete at the Youth Olympic Games in Singapore next month. She got an early warm-up for international competition in May. Bugg played for the U.S. Under-19 Youth National Team that won its fifth straight North, Central America and Caribbean Volleyball Confederation Girls' Youth Continental Championship in Guatemala City, Guatemala, on May 2.
"The first time I ever put on a USA jersey, I didn't know what to do with myself," said Bugg, who plays setter. "I'm really, really excited for this opportunity to play in the Youth Olympics.
"I can't even describe what it was like when they read off the names. I was the last name called, and now I feel relieved, because that was a lot of stress, but I'm also really excited."
Bugg said she hopes that the U.S. team will be even stronger than the one that won in Guatemala because the players have had more practice time together. She also has played with most of the girls before, Bugg said.
"I hope we play more cohesively and together and avoid miscommunication and have a stronger team teamwise," Bugg said. "I'm also aware that the other countries play together year-round, and they're very good, so I'm expecting very intense competition. I'm not expecting to breeze through it at all."
Ron Wilde, coach of the U.S. team, praised Bugg's consistency on the court and her ability to lead the team, no matter the situation.
"Her level of consistency as a setter is a real strong point for her," Wilde said. "When you're looking at a setter, you're looking at someone who's like the quarterback on the football team, and they have to handle the ball on almost every single play.
"She has the ability to deliver a good ball for the hitters and get them into good situations so they can go in for the kill. She's working on her team leadership right now with the club coaches, and the kids love playing for her because she's so steady and so solid as a person as well as a player. She has the same demeanor no matter if the team's winning or losing, and she always comes out with the same level of play."
At the high school and club levels, Bugg has been groomed within a winning tradition.
Cardinal Gibbons won the high school 3-A state championship in November, and Bugg was voted the most valuable player in the state finals. She also played on a Triangle Volleyball Club team that placed fifth last summer in the 16U division at the USA Volleyball Girls' Junior National Championships.
Bugg can't remember a time she wasn't involved in the sport.
"My mom was coaching since I was born, so I've always been around volleyball," said Bugg, who started playing on a club team when she was 10. "I'd always go to the gym with my mom for practices, and all the girls would practice with me. I love volleyball, and it's been really comfortable playing. I meet a lot of great people through it - that's one of my favorite parts of the game."
More than the social aspect of the sport, she loves the competition and the cohesion that forms on the court, as well as how the game constantly challenges her, Bugg said.
"Off the court, I'm a pretty relaxed person, and on the court I play pretty relaxed, but in my head, I'm a lot more competitive. I try to be more consistent and be the steady, encouraging type that keeps the team at a good level," she said. "I love how the sport is really team-oriented and that you can't just play by yourself."
Though she just finished her sophomore year of high school, she already knows that she wants to play on the collegiate level. Beyond that, Bugg said she's just hoping for the best.
"I definitely want to keep playing volleyball, and I've thought about maybe playing beach volleyball because I really like indoor and outdoor, so whichever one I'm better at, I can play," Bugg said. "It'd be awesome to play on the national team, but that's a really long way away."
