“Honestly, I did not want to stay in Jackson.”
As a Jackson local, I had heard this my whole life. All my friends would talk about getting out of Jackson, wanting to get out and experience the world. They especially did not want to go to Union. Olivia Lee was no different.
Lee has been in West Tennessee her whole life and has received many honors throughout her basketball career. In high school, she was the Tennessee Miss Basketball and West Tennessee Female Athlete of the Year recipient. She could’ve gone a lot of different places.
“I just wanted to get away a little bit,” Lee, a junior on Union University’s women’s basketball team, said.
“But I kept feeling God pull me towards here, and in a way, He closed every other door … and so I committed on the spot.”
Lee has been a consistent top performer in the Gulf South Conference during her career at Union. She has earned honors, including First Team All-GSC and GSC Player of the Week. She was also selected for the USA Basketball Division II team, where she competed internationally in Brazil. She was also named to the Division II Conference Commissioners Association All-South Region First Team during this past season. This demonstrates her continued growth in her performance as she was Second Team honor last year. Her leadership on and off the court has also made a significant impact on her team’s success, as she continues to develop her skills and elevate her overall game each season.
“I just felt like God was like, you’ll grow here, and I really have, especially in my faith.”
And Lee has been able to do just that. She has embraced the lifestyle that God has given her. She was able to showcase her faith every day on and off the court, especially as an involved member with her local church at Fellowship. But if that wasn’t enough, staying in Jackson has given her friends and family so many opportunities to watch her play.
“I cannot even explain how much that means to me to get to see them over there and go give them a hug before the game. And people around Jackson, like when my friends come home for breaks, they’ll come watch my games, I just think that the Jackson community truly does love Union women’s basketball,” Lee said.
And a big reason for that is Coach Mark Campbell. Lee had grown up going to Union basketball camps, games, and even church with Campbell. So getting to play for him was a dream come true.
“I know his work and who he is as a person, and that he would care about me not just as a player but as a person too,” Lee said. “It just means so much to us to have played for such a decorated coach, obviously. But we don’t really see him like that. We see him as who he is as a person and how he treats us.”
Not only did God make it abundantly clear that Lee needed to be at Union, but He also brought her older sister, Macey, back to Jackson to play basketball with her.
“I love to tell people this,” Lee said. “I committed first, and she followed me.”
Macey’s presence helped Lee grow on and off the court in so many ways.
“See when people struggle, a lot of people go inward and wonder, Why am I not hitting these shots? What is going on with me?’ But when she was going through those struggles, instead of completely focusing on herself, she focused on others,” Lee said.
A servant’s heart. That’s all that would come to my mind as Lee continued to tell me her story. What an amazing reminder that you can serve others in absolutely everything you do — even during a basketball game.
“It’s kind of funny, because this season I literally started off horrible,” Lee said. “I think at the beginning, when that started to happen, I started to go inward, but then a couple of games in, I kind of shifted my view. That has been something I learned from Macey: you don’t always have to score or do everything to be a good team to serve others.”
What a beautiful mindset, that even when you are having a rough day or a bad game, you can still serve others and show God’s love to them.
“I ended up turning that around and being able to serve other people. God has gifted you with those abilities, and if you’re not using them, then you’re doing a disservice to them.”
Lee’s servant leadership is very evident to the team, both on and off the court.
“Part of what I say to the team for games is that we’ve been gifted with so much, and we’d be doing a disservice to Christ not to go out and serve each other,” Lee said.
The Lady Bulldogs’ season may have ended in the second round of regionals, but Lee is excited and optimistic about the next year. She can’t wait to get back on the court to leave her legacy.
“I hope that people can remember me as a good teammate and a good leader and someone who always served everyone around them.”