Tennis ace secures US scholarship
BOB Davis loved to brag about his grandkids.
So when the nurses entered the room in his ailing years, the former Geelong legend often quipped: “Olivia is going to play at Wimbledon and Patrick is going to play for the Cats”.
Now 19, Olivia Ryan is one step closer to realising her dream, securing a tennis scholarship at Pennsylvania State University.
She departs for the US on Monday, joining mum Edwina, dad Jonathan and brother Patrick on a brief holiday before beginning a four-year sporting education.
In a moment of reflection, Edwina spoke of her late father’s pride in watching Olivia follow her dreams.
“He was telling all the nurses, all the way up until he passed, that he was very proud of them,” Edwina said.
“It was his prediction that Liv would play at Wimbledon and Paddy would be playing for the Cats.
“Mum and I were chatting last night and we said: ‘He’d be smiling down on her and he would be so proud, as we all are’.”
Olivia’s arrival on the college tennis scene completes a near decadelong journey for the talented player, who first picked up a racquet when she was 10. A product of Geelong Lawn Tennis Club, the left-hander has excelled on the court, winning a host of national titles.
Once ranked No. 8 in Australia and No. 2 in Victoria at 18-and-under level, she is currently ranked 92 in Australia.
Having pursued a college tennis career since 2016, the former Sacred Heart student recently toured Penn State University, where she impressed.
“I started looking around at some colleges and I was deciding whether I wanted to go and whether a school would accept me,” Olivia said. “It was a really long process. I chatted to the coaches at the schools, and I did that at a number of different schools, and I narrowed it down to two.
“I had a few Skype calls and early last year I visited Penn State University and by the end of that visit it was all confirmed that I was going to attend there, so it was all very exciting.”
Touring the facilities and having a quick hit on court, Olivia’s aggressive nature with racquet in hand scored the ultimate tick of approval.
“First of all, they thought that I was a good person,” Olivia said.
“With my tennis, they thought I was coachable. I had an attacking game and they liked that I would come forward and be aggressive at the net because there’s a high level of doubles play in college tennis.”
Bright academically, Olivia also drew high acclaim off the court.
“One of the things that impressed the American coaches was Olivia managed to maintain a very high ranking as well as being a full-time student,” Edwina said.
Uprooting her life in Australia, Olivia admitted she was both excited and daunted by the next chapter. “It is a big step,” she said. “I’m just really thankful for this opportunity to study abroad and play tennis at quite a high level.”