Winning runs in the family: With her sister crowned again, Norwell's Oliver eyes own title
NORWELL – Envy is the wrong word. But there's no denying that watching older sister Grace Oliver win a second straight New England basketball championship over the weekend has further stoked the fire that burns inside Maddie Oliver.
The Norwell High junior forward, who has emerged as one of the state's top players, was in the stands at Noble and Greenough School in Dedham on Sunday to watch Grace, herself a former Clippers standout, lead her team to another Class AA New England Preparatory School Athletic Council crown, courtesy of a 66-57 win over Tilton School.
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"I can't say enough good things about my sister," Maddie said. "It's nice to see her succeed. Obviously, going into it (Nobles) is expected to win because of winning last year. So, she was relieved (to be rid of) the pressure and happy to put it away. That was an insane game. Fun to watch."
Grace Oliver used to star at Norwell High before transferring to the prep school last season. The move panned out well as Grace is the reigning Gatorade Player of the Year for the state and will play Division 1 college basketball at Colorado.
Maddie isn't doing too badly for herself, either. She's the reigning South Shore League Sullivan Division Player of the Year and this winter averaged 19.2 points and 9.8 rebounds per game in the regular season. On Tuesday night, she wasn't quite her dominant self, but her teammates picked her up when needed in a 44-34 win over league rival East Bridgewater in the Division 3 Round of 16.
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The win sends the second-seeded Clippers (21-1) on to Friday's quarterfinal. Norwell will host league rival No. 7 Sandwich (21-1) at 6:30 p.m. The teams split their two regular-season meetings with Sandwich winning the season opener, 45-32, at home. Norwell hasn't lost since.
Three more wins, and Maddie Oliver will have that elusive state championship. Seeing Grace celebrate twice is extra motivation.
"Oh, definitely," Maddie said with a laugh. "It's fun to watch her and all of her teammates succeed. We all want the same goal. It definitely pushes me."
Grace Oliver said she's been impressed with how Maddie has flourished after averaging 14 points and 10 boards as a sophomore last winter.
"It's been really, really fun watching her this year," Grace said. "She's really come into her own. Obviously, we don't live in the same house anymore, but we still stay connected. ... She talks about (winning a championship with Norwell) all the time, how she loves this team. They've obviously had a great season and they're very, very motivated. It seems like they've got (a title run) in them."
Maddie Oliver had 13 points in this one, seven of them in the third quarter. Junior point guard Reagan Dowd led the way with 14 points, including two big baskets in the fourth quarter.
First, she knocked down a 3-pointer from the top of the key for a 40-31 lead with 1:36 left. "Honestly, I was open and I just let it go," Dowd said. "I was like, we need some points, we need some energy."
Then she hit a floater in the lane for a 42-31 lead with 35.1 seconds left, capping a play that looked like it might dissolve into a steal at midcourt and an easy breakaway layup for the 15th-seeded Vikings (15-9). Instead, Dowd corralled a loose ball and scored.
"She had some huge plays," Maddie Oliver said. "That doesn't surprise me at all. She's very clutch."
Norwell coach Matt Marani was pleased that his team could survive an upset bid by EB, which had lost both regular-season meetings to Norwell, by scores of 58-41 and 64-47. Although the Vikings never led, they did well to whittle a 13-point deficit to six (37-31) with 3:43 remaining.
"Steve Moore's a great coach and they've got a lot of great players," Marani said of EB. "It's really hard to beat a team three times (in a season). They know us so well; they know everything we're going to do, so they make everything difficult. My hat's off to them."
Jackie Pohl led EB with 10 points, and Emma Farrell (8) and Lily Pavidis (7) also chipped in. The Vikings' five losses in 2024 all have come against Norwell (3) and Sandwich (2).
Freshman forward Alex Cassidy had 11 points for Norwell, which proved it can win without a monster game from Maddie Oliver. She had 18 points, 13 rebounds and 6 assists in an opening-round win over NDA-Worcester, for example.
"It's a nice feeling to have to know that if I'm not particularly on, I can trust all my teammates, especially my point guard, Reagan," Maddie Oliver said. "All the other starters and the kids who come off the bench, I have so much faith in them. I know they can put it away for me even if I'm not having the best night. I'm just really proud of my team. I'm excited with the way we played tonight, and I'm excited for the next round."
This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Watching older sister win another title fuels Norwell's Maddie Oliver
