Girls volleyball: Bui takes over at Harvest Christian

For the past 10 years Mike Bui has been an assistant at one of the best girls volleyball programs in Illinois at St. Charles East.

Now Bui wants to bring that success to his new job, the head coach at Harvest Christian Academy.

Bui will take over for Carissa Oelke, who coached the Lions to a 24-15 record and a fifth straight sectional championship last year. The Lions will return Mikayla Robinson, a South Carolina commit, and the daughter of former Bears wide receiver Marcus Robinson.

"We are bringing back one of the best players in the state," Bui said. "The goal we will set is to establish ourselves as a great program. We have Mikalya for one year. I'm looking more long term to create a great tradition. I've been surrounded by a great tradition at St. Charles East and I want to bring that over to Harvest Christian Academy. That's my main goal."

Bui, who runs the Fusion South club program in Batavia, graduated from Larkin High School where he "was mentored by the great Mary O'Brien," he said. Bui got his associate degree from Northern Illinois University and has been working in club volleyball ever since.

"He's an amazing coach," Harvest Christian athletic director Dave Lockwood said. "He's lights-out."

Bui spent the past 10 years as an assistant to Jennie Kull at St. Charles East.

"Greatest 10 years of my life," Bui said. "If you watch us on the bench we have so much fun. We have more fun than the kids do. She's taught me a lot about the game. Not just the X's and O's. She's taught me how to coach female athletes. I'm thankful for all that she's done for me."

Bui will take over a Harvest Christian team that is 132-60 the last five years with sectional titles each season.

"What drew me to this was to take over a great program that Dave Lockwood has put together at HCA," Bui said. "It's really close to my house so that was a huge factor to be close to my family. It was kind of a no-brainer to take it."