Q&A with Marian girls tennis head coach Olivia Underwood
BLOOMFIELD, Mich. — Former Marian High School student, Olivia Underwood, is now the head coach of the Marian Varsity Tennis team.聽 Olivia has been coaching girls tennis at Marian for the past 4 years.聽 In 2018, she started as an assistant coach to then head coach, Lincoln Wirgau.聽 When Lincoln stepped down in 2020, Olivia took over as head coach.聽 A fun fact about Olivia is that she played for Lincoln when she attended Marian.聽 Olivia was part of Lincoln鈥檚 first State Championship team in 2013.聽 Olivia has fond memories of playing tennis at Marian and being coached by Lincoln.聽 She shares, 鈥渓earning to coach with him, as well as from him, and having his support to take over the program has meant the world to me. The continued success of the program is due to the consistent culture and tradition at the heart of our decisions.鈥�
Olivia started playing tennis when she was 7 years old and took lessons at various clubs in the area. She attended Marian High School (Go Mustangs!) from 2009-2013 and played 4-years of varsity tennis, winning two team state titles (2010 and 2013 seasons). After high school, Olivia committed to Wittenberg University where she played for one year before transferring to Denison University. She played the remainder of her eligibility at Denison University before graduating in 2017 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Health, Exercise, and Sport Studies.
Olivia鈥檚 enthusiasm for coaching the Marian Mustangs tennis team is contagious. She has a championship mindset and an intense love for the sport. Recently, I had the opportunity to ask Olivia about her coaching style and experiences.
What are one or two things that the team does in training that are keys to their success?
Olivia Underwood: Commitment and consistency of effort. Commitment through action and effort are huge for us. We have a great practice structure where every student-athlete pushes themselves in any drill or competition. This in turn pushes the entire team to give their best. No matter if the athlete makes the line-up at the beginning of the season or not, the consistency of effort is the same over the entire season.
How do you encourage the team after a disappointing loss?聽
Underwood: All we can do after a loss of any kind is to see where we can make improvements for the next match. Whether it is our mental toughness, a technical aspect of our game that wasn鈥檛 clicking that day, or maybe we just got outplayed 鈥� there is always something to learn after a match. My focus to these girls after a loss is to take what we can from that loss to be better tomorrow because it’s all about the journey.
Describe your proudest coaching moment.
Underwood: It is difficult to pick my proudest moment as a coach because the student athletes in this program have shown me reasons to be proud of them, daily. Over the last four years, there have been many truly amazing and transformative moments that I could pick from to share. My proudest moments have nothing to do with their athletic success, but rather watching these young women grow into who they want to be, develop leadership tendencies, find their voice, and actively support each other.
What is the biggest life lesson you鈥檝e learned from being a coach?聽
Underwood: The biggest life lessons I have learned though coaching are interpersonal communication and consistency. As a leader and a coach, it is imperative that my words match my actions. It is important that my team always knows what I expect of them because I consistently stick to the same principles and philosophies. This consistency builds a trust that helps me coach, but also lets my team know they can count on me for anything. I believe that trust and consistency builds a strong team dynamic that translates to athletic and personal success. Additionally, learning how to effectively communicate is huge. As a coach I understand that not every athlete has the same needs, not every athlete responds to the same style of coaching, and not every athlete experiences our season the same way. Identifying this allows me to understand each member of my team and create an environment where we can have an open dialogue. The easier it becomes for all of us to effectively communicate, the better I will be at taking care of my team on and off the court and the better they become at taking care of each other.
What legacy do you hope to leave as a coach?聽
Underwood: I hope that each of these girls will remember me as someone who helped them, in some small way, on their path to become the great women that I know they are going to be.
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