Olivia's Love for Basketball Reignites Through Fisher Women's Basketball Team

Transfer student and player for the Fisher Women’s basketball team, Olivia Hamel '26 shares the story of how she fell in love with basketball and how that passion led her to Fisher. 

Originally from a small mountain town in Colorado, Olivia grew up in the snowy outdoors; something that didn’t change when she made the cross-country move to Boston for college. She discovered Fisher through their basketball program after graduating from community college in Colorado. “I decided to go to college right out of high school. I graduated from a community college in Colorado and didn't quite know what to do. One of my basketball teammates, who I went to high school in Colorado with, told me about Fisher and the basketball program,” recounts Olivia. 

Olivia rediscovered her love of basketball through playing for the Fisher Women’s basketball team and found an amazing community that she considers family in her teammates. When speaking about the women she shares her weeknight practices and weekend games with, Oliva says, “The team I play on now has been and will be the best team in the world. I love every young woman I play with in the basketball program. I would not change my team for anything in the world.” Her passion for basketball started before she decided to be a Fisher Falcon. Olivia attributes her joy of playing to the recreational league she joined in the fifth grade in her hometown of Estes Park, Colorado. 

When she’s not playing basketball or Mario Kart in the student center with her friends, Olivia is attending class for her sociology major. “I chose sociology because it was a subject I found interesting from what I learned from high school. I have known that I want to work with children and help them in situations in their lives. I am leaning on becoming a social worker,” she explains. Her career inspiration stems from her personal experience with social workers in her childhood and the feeling of security they gave her, which she hopes to pass on to other children living in neglectful situations. 

Olivia, a transfer student with credits from community college, joins the Fisher College class of 2026. With multiple benefactors, the decision to transfer schools is not an easy one, but Fisher College made the process easier. Having gone through the difficult decision herself, Olivia gives a word of advice to students considering a transfer, “I would say to take your time and make sure you know which college to go to. Pick a college that is known for having diverse cultures, you meet so many new people from everywhere. As a transfer student, adjusting to a new college, it’s not too shabby. You will find friends who you adore and would do anything for you. Don’t be scared to talk to new people, they are a lot more inviting than you may think.”