A cross-country flight never felt better. For Malibu residents Jackie and Bob Sutton, visiting their granddaughter at the University of Virginia and witnessing her final collegiate volleyball game was priceless.
Last Thanksgiving the Suttons left their beachfront home in Malibu for the weekend to fly to Charlottesville, Virginia, to watch their granddaughter, Emily Rottman, play her final match on senior night.
Before a capacity crowd that also included Emily’s mother, Suzie, and her uncle, John, Virginia ended its Athletic Coast Conference season with a 22-25, 26-24, 25-22, 25-22 victory over Maryland. Rottman, a star libero on the women’s team, led the way, recording a match-high 24 digs.
Rottman, who grew up in Santa Barbara, finished her career at UVA with 1,770 digs, the third-most in Cavalier history. Her 541 digs this season ranked as the fifth-most in Virginia single-season history.
The Senior Night spectacle was something to behold for her proud grandparents.
“Everybody knows her. Her picture is all around town. That town just loves their athletes,” Jackie said. “They treated us marvelously. The people were wonderful.
We just felt like part of a family there. We really enjoyed it.”
Rottman comes from a lineage of successful and talented athletic grandkids who hail from the Sutton family. Rottman’s younger sisters, Dani and Alexis, also excel in the sport of women’s volleyball.
Dani is a sophomore outside hitter for Santa Clara University, while Alexis is a star-in-the-making at Santa Barbara High School as a junior. The three sisters get their genes from their father, Steve, who played volleyball at the University of Southern California.
While Emily’s celebrated career has reached its conclusion, the Suttons still have a lot of traveling and spectating to do.
“Now we are focusing on Dani because she goes to Santa Clara. She loves it there,” Jackie said. “But we also have Alexis and Henrik to watch too. And Eric just graduated.”
Jackie and Bob’s daughter Nancy Sutton Svensson has two sons, Eric and Henrik Svensson, with her husband Roger Svensson. Unlike their volleyball-playing cousins, Eric and Henrik have made their marks in swimming:
Eric is a recent college graduate who swam at Arizona State University, while Henrik swims presently at the University of Arizona.
Emily, Dani, Alexis, Eric and Henrik are five of the 14 grandchildren the Suttons follow with interest, care and a loving heart.
“It’s been a great ride,” said Jackie, who with Bob was honored with Bob as 2011 Dolphin Award winners by The Malibu Times for her volunteer efforts and mounting the Christmas nativity scene at the corner of PCH and Webb Way. “They’re really successful in their sports. They always honor their positions on their team and they are team players.”
Ever since the Suttons moved into their house along Pacific Coast Highway in 1954, sports has been the calling among their kids and now grandchildren.
Their children—Carrie, Nancy, Kevin, Julie, Suzie and John—all attended Our Lady of Malibu school. Upon graduating, the girls attended Louisville High School and the boys went on to Loyola High School.
With the beach just a few steps away from their backyard porch, the six siblings grew up playing sports on the beach and on the blacktop of OLM.
With no asphalt or grass around the house, the sand became their home court where sand volleyball, touch football, high jump, broad jump, sprinting and playing catch became the norm on a daily basis. They lived and breathed sports out on the sand 24-7.
A love affair with sports and a foundation for the future had been set for the grandkids of the Suttons.
“Those are the fondest memories for all of us,” Bob said.
The Sutton clan gets together frequently at their Malibu home, built in 1926. For Jackie, these are the moments that every grandparent relishes.
“Malibu is their home,” she said. “They come to visit all the time because they love the beach. I love seeing them all.”
Now grandma and grandpa eagerly await the chance to see their grandchildren play sports up and down the coast in Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach, Laguna Beach and across the country.
“I’m so proud of them. Every one of them,” Jackie said. “Everybody is playing something and we go to everything we can. They just love sports and so do we.”
And just like that, the Suttons were off to Manhattan Beach to see another grandchild play, with grandma and grandpa watching on proudly.