Athlete of the Week – Olivia Felton

This Q + A with AD Lyslo is with varsity basketball co-captain and PC junior Olivia Felton.

Olivia, first off, congrats on being named Jersey Mike’s Athlete of the Week. You and the team are off to a great start and have played some fun basketball to watch so far this year. What’s been the recipe for success so far this season and the improvement over last year?

This year we have focused on using speed to our advantage, especially because we aren’t a particularly big team. We have been going into every game with the intention to play hard and honor God with our efforts and actions in the game. As for improvement, many of us now have another year of experience under our belt, and a better understanding of the game overall.

​You picked up your first league win on Tuesday over Faith Bible and play a tough Clatskanie team on Friday. How are the girls feeling going into this game and what it’s going to take to get a win?

Going into this game, we are looking forward to a challenging game, and the opportunity to surprise other teams in our league. To get a win, it will take a lot of effort from everyone, and motivation to play hard. 

You are off to a great start individually, filling up the stat sheet and playing faster and more under control this year. Is it more experience that’s helped this year, or a different style of play?

This year I have focused on working harder in and out of practice, but I’ve also just become a stronger player as the years have gone on. I think most of the improvement is just from experience, and learning more ways to give myself and my teammates opportunities to score. Defensively, as I’ve played, I have been able to recognize more opportunities to get steals, and doing track in the spring has also helped me become quicker in general.

The overall chemistry on this team looks really good right now. How much fun is this group having right now?

The community on the team this year is great, and it’s been a lot of fun to be a captain along with Tirzah and Juliet. This is a great group of girls, and I think it will be a fun season no matter the outcome. 

Postseason basketball I know is a goal for you guys. What’s it going to take to get your team into the playoffs now 

We will need to continue to work on the small things and become stronger as a unit. I think the thing it will require most is effort, and the girls on our team are hardworking, so I think it is definitely possible to make playoffs if we continue to work as hard as we have.