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06/23/2016 12:00 AMOlivia Powers has broken new ground and been part of some major milestones as a member of the Morgan golf program.
Olivia, who recently completed her junior year, joined the Huskies as a sophomore and was part of a team that won the Shoreline Conference championship, plus the Division IV state crown in 2015.
In the recent spring season, Olivia made history when she was the first female golfer to record a score that counted toward Morgan’s point total in a match. Olivia wound up posting an average nine-hole score of 49.9 in her 10 matches and then shot a 97 for 18 holes playing off men’s tees at the Division IV Championship—becoming the first girl to compete for the Huskies at a state meet.
Next year, Olivia will be one of the athletes who will compete for the Morgan girls’ golf team in its inaugural season.
“I’ve known all of the boys on the team since I was young. They are some of my best friends and have been so supportive of me. They bring my mood up to help me and I really appreciate it. They’ve had so much success with three-straight state titles, so it’s an honor to play on the team,” Olivia says. “[Being the first girl to have a score count] was awesome and a fun match. [Head Coach] Eric Bergman told me about it and I was shocked at first.”
Even though she has a great support system around her, Olivia still came into her junior year wondering if she could recapture her form from last season. True to the task, Olivia only needed to hit a few shots at practice to ease into the swing of things this spring.
“Any time coming back into a season, you never know how well you’ll come back,” says Olivia. “After the first few swings at the driving range in our first practices, I felt everything come back. Confidence and getting the experience through matches are big parts of it since it’s such a big mental game, as well.”
Ryan Cherry was an assistant coach for the Morgan boys’ team this season and will be the head coach of the girls’ team next year. Cherry knows all about what Olivia brought to the boys’ squad and is eager to see her bring those same traits to the girls’ greens in 2017. Olivia will be playing alongside Alex Church, Olivia Amendola, Lindsay Harden, Marie Kane, and Phoebe Sullivan.
“Olivia will be a strong leader for the Morgan girls’ program next season and could be contender for an individual title,” says Cherry. “Olivia will be missed on the boys’ team next season, but she has helped spearhead the movement for a girls’ team, and now she has the opportunity to lead the team she helped get started.”
There were some hurdles involved with securing the girls’ team for next season, although the quest ultimately came to fruition for Olivia and her teammates, who grew even closer together throughout the process.
“When I joined the team sophomore year, there were already two girls on the team. The three of us started working together, along with the CIAC and [Morgan Athletic Director] Kevin Rayel to try and start a girls’ team,” says Olivia, who thanks her family, teammates, and coaches. “There were some bumps in the road, but we feel we are going to do awesome next year with a bonded and cohesive team.”
The only thing Olivia regrets is not joining the Huskies sooner. Still, it’s all worked out as Olivia always felt right at home after being warmly welcomed by her teammates.
“I didn’t do golf my freshman year, but I wish I did. My sophomore year was really fun and I even played in a few matches,” she says. “I grew the most this year, especially with the support of my coaches and teammates. I always felt like I was one of them and it helped me improve my game.”