The rise of Olivia Ellis……From Bulleen Lions SC to representing the Australian National team to Oregon State University on Scholarship.

Olivia Ellis began her journey at Oregon State University in March 2017 and has since completed her first season with the Oregon State Beavers. She had a fantastic freshman year making multiple appearances throughout the season.

With a recent national team selection under her belt, Victorian footballer, Olivia Ellis is well on the way to a successful and fulfilling college career. If her first season with Oregon State is anything to go by the next couple of years should be very exciting.

Her current success in college can be attributed to all her hard work and sacrifice in the years leading up to departing.

Olivia was selected for the national U20’s Young Matilda’s squad to compete in Mandalay, Myanmar in July/August last year.

Olivia, along with 22 other young Australian women, were selected to represent Australia and play against open-age teams from Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore and Malaysia, where they finished fourth in a competition of eight.

“It was a good learning experience because we’d never played together, so it was good considering we were so much younger than them,” Olivia said of the Young Matilda’s Myanmar campaign.

Olivia’s love of soccer stems from a two-year stint in England with her family, where her brother began playing the sport. Upon her return to Australia, Olivia followed in her brother’s footsteps and after two years with a local club, was selected to play in a state team at the age of 12.

“I guess I just have a lot of fun when I’m playing it, it feels great to be in a team, winning games and working together,” Olivia said.

Multiple time State Representative

Since then, the talented youngster has been selected multiple times for state representative sides in Victoria. Now with an international appearance on her sporting resume, Olivia was always primed for a US college experience, that kicked off in August of 2017.

Returning home from the Myanmar tour in which she scored two goals, Olivia was greeted by an offer from Oregon State University, a division one program that had a keen eye on the Victorian talent. Other offers came through the door from a variety of NCAA Division 1 programs but none matched the package Oregon State put forth for Olivia.

What made this opportunity even more difficult to turn away was the fact that head coach of Oregon State, Linus Rhode, traveled down under to watch a few of Olivia’s games and training sessions. Something that doesn’t happen too often for Australian Athletes.

A strong athletic resume helped secure a fantastic opportunity

“I think it really helped to have that Australian representative squad in my profile. I think that really helped me get recognised,” Ellis said of her Matilda’s experience.

Surrounding herself with international players from the US during her young soccer career, Olivia was enticed by the stories and memories her foreign teammates shared with her about college life.

Although Olivia had clearly been impressing all the right people in the soccer sphere in Australia, she recognised the opportunity to pursue a bigger dream and relished the chance to be an international student-athlete.

“I’m very grateful for the opportunity because I know a lot of people stay in Australia and don’t get that opportunity to go somewhere. It means a lot to be able to follow my dream,” the young Matilda said.

The committed student-athlete spent the time between finishing year 12 and beginning her college voyage playing for Melbourne City in the W league, building her skills and fitness in preparation for the elite level of sport that she was expected to slip into upon arrival.

Olivia is now competing against and training with National team players from around the world. This will only strengthen her future opportunities with the national team here in Australia.

We can’t wait to watch her continue to develop and thrive in the US college sport setting!

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