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Upon committing to Syracuse for cross country, Olivia Joly felt nervous about the pressure of performing for a big school. To adjust, Joly had to channel her passion from running for North Kingstown High School (Rhode Island).

When Joly stepped on the maroon track for the first time as a freshman in 2017, North Kingstown coach Jen Chabot paid close attention. Chabot instantly noticed her passion for cross country, and once practice started, Joly wanted to be the fastest kid on that track.

“I had known (Joly) ever since she was younger, (she’s) so easy to coach,” Chabot said, reflecting on Joly’s freshman campaign. “She would do anything you said, no questions asked. She just wanted to run.”

Joly is seven years removed from the first time she started running for North Kingston. During her four years with the Skippers, Joly developed into one of the better runners at the school. Joly’s success led her to Syracuse, where she’s entering her final season with the Orange.

“We knew whatever she was going to do, she was going to do it right,” Chabot said of Joly. “She has been and always will be a one-of-a-kind talent.”

As a freshman for North Kingstown, Joly saw instant success. In the school’s opening meet at the Injury Fund Carnival at East Greenwich High School, she placed sixth in the girls 4000-meter run with a time of 16:36.06 — North Kingstown’s second-best time.

A few weeks later at the Class A Championships in North Scituate, Joly finished 17th out of 89 runners in the girls 5000-meter race. She was one of four North Kingstown runners to place in the top-20 and the only freshman in the group.

“I’d always like to continue to score lower,” Joly said, looking back on past performances.

While she finished in the top-75 at the Nike Cross Nationals, Joly felt there was room for improvement. Prior to Joly’s sophomore season in 2018, assistant coach Luke Home had an answer.

“Her head would violently whip from left to right (when she ran),” Home said. “We spent four years working on this, but I knew she’d grow out of it eventually.”

Joly didn’t let her unorthodox running method hold her back. Another top-15 finish at the Class A Championships in North Scituate came before a 20th-place finish at Nike Cross Nationals Northeast Regionals.

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Following a strong sophomore campaign, Joly picked up right where she left off, finishing 14th at nationals. As an upperclassman, Joly’s college decision loomed large, hoping to end up at Syracuse.

Leading up to the Rhode Island Interscholastic League State Championship in 2020, Joly would be participating in her final runs for North Kingstown. She knew the expectations were high.

Joly channeled what she learned from her previous experiences, registering a career-best finish. She placed eighth in the 5000-meter, leading the North Kingstown girls to a third-place finish. The week prior, she secured 10th place in the 1A Girls 5000 meter run. Joly was the first North Kingstown runner to cross the finish line in that race.

At the end of the season, she earned all-division and all-state honors for her performances. Yet the biggest accomplishment of them all was breaking out of her previous bad habit.

“In one of her relays, she finally ran without moving her head,” Home joked. “She’s always been a distance runner, and she knew how to showcase her speed.”

Now entering her senior year at Syracuse, Joly is one of its most experienced runners. For now, she has her sights set on the NCAA Championships in Charlottesville, Virginia, in November.

“We had a lot of fun with it last year, and had a lot of momentum going into it,” Joly said. “A lot of us had raced at an NCAA championship before, so I’m looking forward to it this time around.”

Published on September 17, 2024 at 11:18 pm