Olivia Emerling will continue basketball career at St. John Fisher

SPRINGVILLE –– “She has to go down as one of the all-time lady players at [Springville-Griffith Institute].” That is how Olivia Emerling is remembered by Chris Mathewson, coach of the S-GI girls varsity basketball team.

Emerling graduated from S-GI this past spring as the team’s co-captain and said she plans to continue in athletics when she arrives at St. John Fisher for college.

During her four years of high school, the athlete amassed 1,058 points – good for second all-time among girls in the school’s history.

She is also one of four Lady Griffins to reach the 1,000 point mark and did so with the help of 311 points in her final year, a rate of 15.3 points per game.

“I know from talking with our opposing coaches that containing her was their focus and she still had her biggest year,” Mathewson said. Emerling also racked up 104 rebounds and 44 steals in her senior year on the team, alone.

On the school’s senior night, held at S-GI on Friday, Feb. 10, Emerling led her team to a 53 – 42 victory, taking home her own game total of 19 points. At the same time, Emerlingpushed her career point total to 1,007, surpassing the 1,000-point mark. She was honored at the event, along with fellow senior teammates Brittany Adamczyk, Alissa Emerson and Alex Wiede.

At the close of her senior year, after falling short in the B-1 championship, Emerling was selected to play in the Cheektowaga Lions Club’s 11th Annual Exceptional Senior High School Ladies Basketball Classic.

Other recognitions she received during the past year included Channel 7’s selection of her as a “Super 7” athlete, first team All ECIC Division 3 and being chosen as a member of the All ECIC “Small Schools” All Star team.

When describing Emerling’s play on the court, Mathewson said, “She didn’t rely heavily on 3-point shooting, which makes scoring 1,000 points that much more difficult. She could score from anywhere on the floor: outside, in traffic, in the post, which makes for a brutal match up for other teams.”

Athletes at the college level will now have the opportunity to compete against the Springville athlete as she undertakes the next step of her basketball career at St. John Fisher.