There’s nothing more exciting for a collegiate sports team than a freshman coming in and having an incredible opening season. It speaks to the team’s longevity and future potential. Colorado Mesa University (CMU) freshman Olivia Reed accomplished this for the women’s basketball team, achieving numerous awards and accomplishments this season.
The Windsor, Colorado product was the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) freshman of the year, in addition to earning 1st team honors in the conference.
Reed is a 5’11’’ post player who dominates the game inside, both offensively and defensively. On the offensive side, the forward led the team in scoring, averaging 12.4 points per game. Defensively, she set a freshman program record, pulling down 275 rebounds on the year, which also led the conference. In addition to dominating on the glass, Reed tied the freshman single season blocks record with 47.
“One of my goals was to get freshman of the year. Also, just to do anything I could to help my team win. My coach said he set an expectation for me to be one of the leading rebounders in the RMAC, and I was that,” Reed said.
For Reed and the Mavericks, the season was a tale of two seasons. The squad struggled to start the season, losing nine of their first 10 games. Then, the team finished the season strong, going 12-7 down the stretch, and reaching the RMAC playoffs, where they lost to the Colorado School of Mines in the first round.
“I feel like it went well, personally. I wish we could have done a little better and gone a bit further as a team. I set some goals at the beginning of the season, and I met most of them,” Reed said.
“When I was younger, my family moved around a lot. I switched high schools my junior year, so I kind of already had to adapt to new teammates and coaches, so I feel like that helped the transition a bit,” Reed said.
Reed’s familial moves were due to her father’s career as a college coach for men’s basketball, proving that this sport has been a major aspect of her life’s path thus far, and will continue to be moving forward.
Superstition or pre-game rituals are not a big aspect of Reed’s performance, she prefers to rely on natural talent and the adrenaline of the heat of the game. However, there was one superstition she did mention.
“If I play bad[ly] one game, I probably won’t do my hair the same way next time,” Reed said.
After the team’s season was cut short in the first round, Reed does not seem discouraged in her team or herself, knowing there are still many chances left in her career to continue improving with the team and as an individual.
“My mom would say I’m resilient, just because of how much we’ve had to overcome with moving so much, and I could say that helps me in basketball, just with moving on from mistakes,” Reed said.
After an incredibly promising freshman season, Reed is ready to begin drawing up future goals and prepare for her sophomore season. With the team only losing one senior due to graduation, the 2023-2024 women’s basketball team should be a force in the RMAC.
Olivia reed jumps to grab a rebound against University of Colorado Colorado Springs back on Feb. 4. The forward finished the game with 16 points and 16 rebounds in the 64-62 point win.