By Adam Bossers, Riveters SC contributor
Sports have an incredible way of uniting all of us, whether you’re in the stands watching, or, in the case of former Pittsburgh Riveters midfielder Olivia Damico, playing with your teammates in front of thousands.
After a four-year career with Penn State’s women’s soccer team, Damico came to the Riveters as a player with plenty of experience playing at a high level and with a college program that had the facilities suitable for the aspirations of future pros. However, with few expectations of what was ahead, she took a chance based on the club’s standards and reputation before joining the team.
“I wasn’t sure what to expect from a summer league standpoint, but I knew from conversations with Scott and other members of the staff just how dedicated they were to making it feel like a pro environment,” Damico said.
Any uncertainties the recently graduated senior had about joining the Riveters vanished quickly upon arriving at AHN Montour and Highmark Stadium, already the home of the Riverhounds’ pro men’s team. Her choice to come to Pittsburgh paid off thanks to the club’s facilities, identity and fans.
“I’m really happy with the decision I made to join the team,” she said. “Not only did I get a great playing experience — in practices, in the strength room, on the field — it was such an incredible experience, in general, because of how the organization threw themselves into the team and really treated us like professionals, and same with the fans who made it really special, too.”
Damico wasn’t the only one to take this leap and find her decision to be fruitful. With 39 players following suit, the squad was filled to the brim with competition, which Damico says only helped push the standard further.
“We had a large group of girls, which I think was beneficial to us, because of the number of girls that were there wanting to train, that bumped the level (of play),” she said. “While girls are there, and it’s happy and it’s fun, it’s also a competition. At the end of the day, you want to be on the field.”
Despite the high level of competition and a bigger squad, it began to click on the field and off of it, too. With nearly half of the players being from Pittsburgh and Damico being a New York native, it might’ve been easy to feel isolated from much of the group. But through the game, they all found that it was easy to bond.
“Soccer is a game that unites, that’s something that you can all bond over,” Damico said. “It’s the small things like hanging out in the locker room, or stretching before practice and just having some good conversations. Especially by the end of the season, the group was really clicking and I wish we had more time together.”
Damico made the most of her time in Pittsburgh, finishing as the second-leading scorer on the team with four goals and three assists for the Great Forest Division champions, and showing her ability to try and make the leap to the professional ranks like her 2025 teammate, Abi Hugh. Damico’s positive experience with the team, players and practices alike is something she wants other young players to experience in the future, too.
“I know that we have countless girls every summer who maybe don’t have a great training situation at home,” she said. “I think from what they could see from social media, it was very intriguing, and I think that will gain a lot of traction because of how the organization did at selling the group and generating hype around it. That gets players excited, and that will 100 percent be a recommendation of mine if people are looking for somewhere to go.”
Some aspiring new Riveters players will be on the field this weekend, Jan. 3, when the team hosts its Invitational Combine, as the club looks to be bigger and even better in its second USL W League season beginning this May.
