Basketball has already taken Staten Island native Olivia Schmitt to Florida — but it’ll all come full circle with her next destination. The former Staten Island Academy star, who is heading into her senior year at DME Academy in Daytona Beach, will return to her home state.
She recently committed to play her college ball at Syracuse University. Schmitt announced the signing on social media and will play for second-year head coach Felisha Legette-Jack in the ACC next season.
The 5-foot-6 point guard left SIA last year after two seasons. She averaged 21.5 points per game for the Tigers as a sophomore and led them to the NYSAIS/PSAL Class A state title in 2022. The dexterous scoring guard was also named to the New York State Sportswriters Association’s Class A Second-Team that season.
Last year, at DME, she was was nominated for Florida’s Girls’ Basketball Player of the Year after averaging 12.8 points, 5.5 assists, and 3.1 steals. She shot 40% from 3 while leading the Daytona Beach school to a 20-7 record and the No. 6 ranking in the state.
In a post to X (Twitter), Schmitt thanked God, her family, her coaches, and also threw a nod to her former school while announcing her commitment.
“I’m so insanely excited to get started and I’m always looking forward to the future with you!” she wrote.
Legette-Jack was equally optimistic about the school’s upcoming prospects, especially Schmitt.
“Olivia, our point guard, we really liked Olivia. She was small, and you know what I really don’t like small point guards but our best point guards have been 5-7 and under and Liv fit’s that category,” Legette-Jack told Cuse.com. “She has a certain toughness about her. She’s a New Yorker, and it’s neat that we got two New Yorkers to say ‘yes’ to us because we are trying to make that our strength.”
“She can pass that ball; she can shoot that ball and one thing I love about her is she has no problem going in with the trees and trying to make things…
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