We are excited to announce our February Athlete of the Month, Olivia Pichardo!

A native of Queens, New York, Pichardo is the first female NCAA Division 1 baseball player.

Pichardo knew that she wanted to play baseball at the collegiate level since eighth grade. She joined the USA Baseball Women’s National Team in the summer of 2022

The 18-year-old first-year student from Queens, New York, has devoted her time and energy to baseball since age 5. By middle school, she dreamed she could continue playing in college, despite being a female athlete in a male-dominated sport.

So when she started her first semester at Brown in September, she participated in baseball walk-on tryouts followed by a weeks-long assessment process that included rigorous practice and workouts with current players. She was elated, albeit in shock, when she clinched a spot as the team officially announced its roster for the 2023 season, which begins this February.