Kyrie 4 “Atomic Pink”
OLIVIA BOLDUC
It’s rare to find the determination and basketball IQ in a senior, let alone a sophomore, at the high school level, yet there Olivia Bolduc is, running opponents down multiple times a week both physically and mentally for the Spring Mills girls’ basketball team. Her rise as a leader and true point guard at such a young age is not one founded on privilege or necessity, but rather on hard work and grit developed over a short lifetime of obsessing over the sport.
And while she’s just one of many talented hoopers on the Cardinals’ squad, her contributions have helped the youth-laden program to a perfect 18-0 regular season record, earning them a weeklong break before facing off against their first opponent in the Region II, Section 1 tournament. At least in terms of the team’s undefeated run, it’s a different picture from last year, in which Bolduc and her team swept through the regional tournament and lost in the first round of the state playoffs bracket.
Looking back, it taught her a lot. First and foremost, there are always ways to get better.
“It was definitely scary because last year we started out with really tough competition, so it showed me what I had to work on,” Bolduc said. “It showed my weaknesses, but then playing over the summer and working with my dad and working on myself, (even now) there are things now I have to work on.”
Sophomore | Guard Spring Mills High
13.9 ppg, 3.1 apg, 3.9 spg
Bolduc is currently averaging 13.9 points, 3.1 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 3.9 steals per game, all better compared to her freshman year except for rebounding which is roughly the same, all helping the Cardinals grind out massively lopsided wins against their regular season opponents. For context, the Cardinals have outpaced opponents 1,228 to 609.
And while the team has faced some tough opponents this year, the hardest test is about to begin — if they make it through regionals undefeated, a time of the season notorious for upsets.
“Just to continue to work and not give up, because I feel like it’s easy for an (undefeated) team to be content where they’re at,” she said when asked about what the Cardinals need to do to stay on course. “Coach Gosk has continued to remind us that we have to stand our ground and keep working while getting better at the smaller details.”
And with her strengths — she noted ball handling and defensive energy are her top two — she’s also quick to admit she sees a few weak points in her game.
“Sometimes it can be court vision — when I look at the hoop that’s all I see,” she said. “And foul trouble, oh my gosh, I get emotional fouls.”
The Kicks
Kyrie 4 “Atomic Pink”
Mastermind / Benjamin Nethongkome
Release / 2017
Fun fact / Was the first to incorporate the innovative design technique “decoupling.”
Like many before her, a large part of Bolduc’s basketball journey has been consuming the sport. From studying film to watching college and professional games, to trying to emulate her favorite players, she’s constantly geared toward the game.
And through that, she’s created her own identity, highlighted by none other than her sneakers: the Kyrie 4s in the Atomic Pink colorway.
“I love pink, it’s my favorite color,” she said when asked about why she chose the sneakers. “The Kyrie 4 is my favorite shoe because of the way Kyrie plays, it’s just amazing. When I put them on, I’m in love with them (every time).
“I’ve never found a shoe that fits so perfectly, and I don’t want to play in another shoe.”
She loves it so much, in fact, she plans to continue to buy it while it’s in stock each time she grows out of the pair she is and will be currently wearing.
The sneaker is one in Kyrie Irving’s branded line with Nike, a sleek sneaker built with his game in mind, elevating, among other things, his cuts as he drives through defenders on the side of his foot. In many ways, Bolduc tries to emulate her game after Irving’s, looking up to the NBA star no matter the team he plays for.
When asked about what she likes the best about his game, Bolduc noted a few key aspects.
“Definitely his guard abilities, his ball handling is on a different level — I know that’s what all point guards need to do — but his court vision and overall game, why would I not want to have that stuff? So I like him,” she said.
Yet, while the Kyrie 4s are a vessel for her game, Bolduc knows she’s constantly honing her own brand within the sport. She hopes to continue to develop that to get on college scouts’ radars while propelling her team to new heights.
“I want (us) to make it to states, do well, win, but truly compete there and be a top team,” she said.
As for her goals, she said she’s about halfway to where she wants to be — “I’m not where I want to be but I’ve come a far way,” she said laughing — and along the way continue to develop her love for the sport.
“It takes my mind to a different place,” she said. “It’s just so much fun, and I’m very competitive so every time I’m on the court it spikes something in my heart; it’s just so fun.”
