Olivia Draguicevich weighs in on her life as a student-athlete 

Tyrenisha James 

Reporter 

Olivia Draguicevich is no stranger to soccer. 

“I grew up playing because my parents and the rest of my family played it. It’s always been a sport everyone in my family played,” Draguicevich said. 

 Draguicevich was four years old when she first began playing. 

“Growing up I was able to do other sports on the side, but soccer was like my main sport,” Draguicevich said. “I took a liking to it pretty quick.”  

Draguicevich was inspired by an older cousin to play soccer at a collegiate level.  

“I saw my older committee to a college, and I was like oh wow, I could probably do that. I kept working really hard, and that’s what inspired me to play college soccer,” Draguicevich said. 

Draguicevich said that her family often comes out to support her and after a game she and her family dine out. 

Draguicevich reflected on the fact that this season was a bit different from the previous ones. 

“We wake up, go to class, and after class, we’d go to treatment,” she said. “This year was a little different because some weeks we’d have to get COVID testing, in the mornings depending on if we had a game that weekend.”  

The biggest lesson she has learned while being a student athlete is time management. 

“Time management is super important, especially with managing both school and soccer. You just have to stay on top of all your work, and make sure you’re doing it when you need to do it,” she said. 

Draguicevich commends her academic advisors and professors. 

“We have academic advisors, that watch over our grades, and help us stay on top of everything,” she said. “I have really good teachers, that are super flexible with our soccer schedule. So that’s been super helpful.”  

Draguicevich credits her teammates for fueling her motivation on the field. 

“We all motivate each other to play for one another,” she said. 

Draguicevich reflected on her accomplishments from last year and this year’s season. 

“Last year, I was leading goal scorer, and I tied the school’s record for game-winning goals,” Draguicevich said. “This year I got leading goal score and I got 3rd team all-conference.” 

Draguicevich made sure to recognize her teammates as well.  

“It was cool to see an improvement in how I was playing, but I am not going to score without the hard work of the rest of my team,” she said. 

Throughout her lengthy soccer career, Draguicevich shares advice she learned along the way. 

“Always, put your best forward. Even if you’re having a bad game, it is still the effort that matters. It’s okay if you mess up, it’s about what you do next,” Draguicevich said.