Olivia Madkins made history as the first Black player on Columbia University’s women’s softball team since its founding.
The 18-year-old sociology major and freshman outfielder began playing softball at the age of eight, but never realized the significance of her involvement until recently when she received an offer to Columbia University. Her first softball experience came while playing T-ball for a guys’ team.
She told Andscape, “I’ve always thought of softball as a means for me to do bigger things with my life. I just saw an opportunity to do good for a lot of people and really empower my community.”
She recounted, “On the day that I got my official offer, Coach T [Jennifer Teagues] actually let me know that I would be the first [Black player], and of course, my first reaction was like. ‘OK, you mean like the first since you’ve been coaching here? But she was like no, no, the first. I was shocked, but my heart was set on the school regardless, and I just knew that that would make my opportunity here that much more special.”
The Los Angeles resident prioritized academic success and Division I athletics in college selection from a young age. As a result, even though Columbia was far from home, attending the school made sense following one successful recruitment camp in 2021.
Madkins was anxious to perform whatever job was assigned to her when she first joined the softball team, whether it was pinch-hitting in close games or calling pitches from the bench, all with the goal of setting an example for future generations of women.
The pioneer shared that she was used to being the only Black girl on her squad, but witnessing Odicci Alexander of the 2021 Women’s College World Series encouraged her to make a huge influence.
Madkins established her worth in March by playing her first game of the season against Kentucky, a top-25 team. Teagues, her coach, said she knew she’d be a great partner the instant she met her.
Madkins’ parents, Julee and Gerald Madkins, have always supported her, enrolling her in various activities such as track, basketball, and tennis.
Her father, a former UCLA player and NBA shooting guard for the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat, has always been an inspiration to her, even though she attends most of her softball tournaments and engagements with her mother.
Madkins said of her father, “He just empowers me in my own identity and to be strong in who I am and to continue to be a good representation for our community, so all around a really great support system there.”
After lifting weights in the garage together, her father sent her off to school the morning she received the call from Columbia. The proud dad remarked, “The fact that I’ve been around sports my whole life, my daughter understands that she has certain advantages that some African American girls do not and she doesn’t lean on those… but I tell her all the time, ‘you have to take advantage of what’s in front of you, it’s not your fault who your dad is.’ You’ve been given an opportunity to do some things, can you use the opportunity you’ve been given to help others?’ And I think that’s exactly what she’s done.”
Her mother also expressed, “I always would keep all of her mentors in touch and have my mother-in-law, aunts and cousins reach out to her. For me it was just putting people around her, lots of mentors and also really advocating for her with her coaches and making sure that they understood because they often didn’t, but they were really open to hearing it and having these conversations and did everything they could to protect her.”
B.B. Bates and Aleah Macon, two former UCLA softball players who taught Madkins the basics of the game, often encouraged her, “If you can see her, you can be her.” As a result of the representation these women gave, she was able to stay focused on her goal.
She played for the New Jersey Intensity in a 14-and-under league after briefly living in New York for her father’s job with the New York Knicks.