Montclair Athlete Spotlight: Olivia Lynch, Montclair High School, lacrosse

by Andrew Garda

garda@montclairlocal.news

Most days aren’t quite as relaxed for Montclair High School senior girls lacrosse goalie Olivia Lynch as Monday, when the Mounties trounced Park Regional, 14-1,  in the opening round of the NJSIAA North 1, Group 4 tournament. The Colgate commit doesn’t often get to see just four shots during a game, but she was happy for the easy win for her team.

“I feel like the past two games we were kind of in a slump,” she said after the game. “So to have a victory like this feels really good.”

Lynch is especially proud of the way her team has bounced back from tough stretches this season, citing the recent Essex County Tournament final against Glen Ridge as an example. While the Mounties lost that game, 11-9, it was a marked improvement over their previous meeting when MHS lost 14-5.

“After the first game we played against them, we were feeling really bad about that,” she explained. “Then we came out with the energy we had, and it felt really good to be right with them all throughout the game. Unfortunately, we couldn’t pull it through, but at the end of it we were all really happy with how we played and how we stuck together.”

While the season is wrapping up and Lynch is looking towards college, she’s also trying to appreciate the time she has with her teammates.

“I really love all these girls and I’m really proud of them and how far we’ve come.”

Lynch took a few minutes after Monday’s win to answer a few questions so everyone can get to know her better.

Have you started to think about Colgate?

This whole season I haven’t been thinking of it that much, but playing players that I will be playing with next year, like when we played Ridgewood, it keeps it in the back of my mind. It’s really exciting.

What will you be studying there?

I’m going to study biology because I want to go into pre-med.

Have you always been interested in the medical field? What area?

Yeah ever since I was younger. Pediatrics, that’s what I am leaning towards.

Favorite subject now?

Biology, even though it’s really hard. I still love it.

What do you do for fun?

I’m really into art. I love painting, For the past three years I played ice hockey on the boys team so I was really into that in the winter. But, I think art is my other passion.

As you wrap the season, what are the goals?

I think just leaving a mark. Like in the county championships, we wanted to win that to give the school a title. So now a state championship would be the ultimate goal. But I think just leaving the season with no regrets, everyone playing their heart out.

What will you miss about Montclair?

The sense of community and heart when we’re playing. Because “bleeding blue” really means something here and wearing the Montclair logo on your chest is really important.