Childhood cancer survivor Olivia Jarvis wants her story of recovery to inspire those overcoming illnesses or other obstacles.
Childhood cancer survivor Olivia Jarvis wants her story of recovery to inspire those overcoming illnesses or other obstacles.
When women’s softball pitcher Olivia Jarvis was four years old, her young life was sidelined by cancer. Despite the attention her illness brought — like articles in her hometown newspaper and an appearance on the local TV station for her family’s participation in Relay for Life — Jarvis doesn’t think of herself as different, and certainly not special. Her parents did everything they could, “to make me feel like a normal kid,” she said.
But as a sophomore at Maryville, Jarvis does stand out, for her potential to become a star softball player. She was an integral part of the Saints’ 2019 winning season which took them to the Great Lakes Valley Conference tournament.
Conference losses were heartbreaking, Jarvis said. But in step with her own comeback mentality, the Saints ultimately swung their way to fourth place out of 14 teams. “Everybody was jumping up and down and hugging each other,” she recalled.
Throughout the season, Jarvis demonstrated both a “fighter mentality” and a “kind spirit,” according to Courtney Conley, head coach of the Saints softball program. “Olivia is truly the epitome of Maryville softball,” Conley said. “There is nothing this woman can’t do.”
Jarvis began playing softball at age seven, with her father coaching the team. In her senior year of high school, she was named to the All-State first team as a pitcher, and she finished the year with a .346 batting average with 21 runs batted in. As a Maryville freshman, her earned run average was under three and her walks plus hits per inning pitched were 1.30.
But Jarvis downplays her accomplishments and praises her teammates for the successful season. Eyeing 2020, she and the other players are busy practicing and pushing themselves at the gym. “If there are days when I’m struggling, I can count on my teammates to pick me up,” Jarvis said. “We all want to win and we want to do it together; it’s not just about any one person.”
In remission from cancer since the age of eight, the accounting major never misses a yearly checkup. She doesn’t remember much about her days in the hospital except for knowing that she never felt alone. She wants the story of her recovery to help people who are working to overcome illness or other obstacles.
“I just hope I can be an inspiration to anyone that’s going through a hard time,” Jarvis said. “I want them to know they can still play at the highest level.”