Olivia Bresnahan

PITTSBURGH — Her life-long ambition was right in front of her.

And Olivia Bresnahan spurned it.

The Butler High School and Duquesne University graduate recently turned down an offer to play professional women’s basketball in Germany to accept the position of graduate assistant coach at the University of Akron.

“I remember when I was a little kid in school ... We had to draw a picture of what we wanted to be when we grew up,” Bresnahan recalled. “Other kids drew pictures of firemen. I drew a picture of a professional athlete.

“This was one of the hardest decisions I’ve made in my life. I’ve been playing this game since I was 4.”

But the long-time point guard used her long-term future as the basis for her decision.

She hired an agent to pursue pro playing opportunities and wound up receiving an offer to play in Germany. At the same time, Bresnahan was one of only 50 applicants nationwide to be accepted into the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association’s “So You Want To Be A Coach” program at the Women’s Final Four in Tampa, Fla.

It was through that program Bresnahan learned of the graduate assistant’s opening at Akron.

“That was a three-day program and a lot of college coaches talked to us,” Bresnahan said. “Coaching college basketball is something I really want to do and I knew I wasn’t going to play forever.

“Akron has an outstanding program. Joining a staff like that was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.”

Slippery Rock University graduate Jodi Kest has been Akron’s head coach for nine years. She is 142-139 there — 368-292 in 23 years overall as a collegiate coach — and has guided the Zips to three consecutive 20-plus win seasons and two straight Mid-American Conference titles.

One of Kest’s assistants, Preston Reid, was video coordinator at Florida State when Bresnahan played there.

“I’m looking to join the MBA program at Akron or get a masters in exercise physiology,” Bresnahan said. “I need to start setting up my future. This is the right move to make.

“I won’t totally rule out playing again if some magical thing happened in a year or two down the road. But, realistically, trying to come back and play at that high a level after not playing for two years? I’m probably done.

“Just getting an offer, knowing someone believes I have the ability to play overseas, means a lot to me,” she added.

Bresnahan played on consecutive 20-win teams at Duquesne, including this year’s team that won a school-record 12 Atlantic 10 Conference games.

Bresnahan averaged 7.5 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.5 assists for the Dukes, leading the team with 57 steals, 89 free throws made and 130 attempted.

“The family-type of friendships and relationships I made are what I’ll remember,” she said. “I love playing basketball, but the bonding with teammates is what I love the most about it.

“I was lucky. I left Florida State on a good note and still have a lot of friends in that program, too. But I’m extremely happy with the way things went for me at Duquesne and for my playing career.”

Bresnahan earned a marketing degree at Duquesne. But she’s not saying goodbye to basketball.

“Hopefully not for a long time,” she said. “I don’t know what level of college ball I want to coach yet, but I definitely know I want to coach.”