GUAYNABO, Puerto Rico – Drake volleyball great Haley Bush has continued to showcase her skills after graduation with the start of her professional volleyball career. Bush is a member of the Guaynabo Mets, located in a suburb of Puerto Rico's capital city of San Juan.
 
Bush signed with Guaynabo in late December and arrived in Puerto Rico on Jan. 3 as a "reinforcement", or non-native player. Most players in the league are natives of the island as Puerto Rico boasts a vibrant volleyball scene. In order to diversify their rosters and promote more competitive balance, each team is allowed to carry four foreign players on their roster. According to Bush, reinforcements are very important to the competitiveness and operation of the league and add to already high expectations.
 
"I went in a little blind on what the pro volleyball world was like, what was expected of me, how it all worked, and what the experience would be like," Bush said. "The sports culture here surrounds the volleyball league everywhere I go…the energy and commitment to the teams is so strong throughout the island."
 
After a quick move, the Mets began their preseason training which, according to Bush, was similar to her time as a Bulldog with everyday practices and scrimmages. The Waukee native utilized the assistance of Fernando Morales, the head volleyball coach at the University of Evansville and current head coach of the Puerto Rican national team.
 
"[Morales] got me in contact with a team that was interested in signing me," Bush added. "He allowed be to bug him with a billion questions on the team, the area, the experience, and everything else."
 
The Mets are one of seven teams that make up the Liga de Voleibol Superior Femenino de Puerto Rico, or the LVSFPR, the top women's professional league on the island nation. Each team takes on the other six four times to make up a 24-game regular season schedule. The numerous contests cause some short turnarounds including multiple instances of two to three matches in a row.
 
The LVSFPR determines a regular season champion with a scoring system similar to professional soccer. Each game is worth a total of three points, all of which are awarded to the winning team if they finish the match in four sets or less. Any five-set matches give two team points to the winning side and one to the defeated team.
 
The league's regular season will conclude in mid-March with playoffs shortly following. Six of seven teams compete in the tournament playoffs for a championship with the finals taking place in early May.
 
"It has definitely been an adjustment of having so many games throughout any given week, but that's the dedication you need to make it as a professional athlete," Bush concluded.
 
Haley wrapped up her prolific collegiate career in December after leading the Drake to a second-straight MVC Tournament title berth and second-straight appearance in the NIVC. She won two MVC Player of the Year Awards as a Bulldog and finished her time in Des Moines as the program's all-time leader in kills (1,755) and attempts (5,025).
 
"I am very happy for and very proud of Haley," Drake's head volleyball coach Darrin McBroom said. "Since her start at Drake it has always been her goal to play professionally. I am thrilled that her dream has finally come to fruition. She has worked very hard to get there and was such an impactful player for our program and in the Missouri Valley Conference. I believe she will continue to have great success in this next step on her journey."