Olivier was joined by family members, friends and current and former coaches for her signing ceremony on Friday. 

Highland Baptist Christian School standout M’Kiyiah Olivier signed with Louisiana Christian University on Friday during a ceremony at the school’s gymnasium.

Olivier, who has amassed over 1,800 points for the Lady Bears during her tenure, was a hot commodity with several programs vying for her signature. In the end, her decision was made when LCU offered her a full scholarship to continue her academic and athletic career.

“It took a lot off my family’s plate to have more money for me to go to school,” Olivier said.

The road to an opportunity to play at the college level wasn’t always easy for Olivier, who first got her start by playing against her older brothers.

“I started off playing really young, I actually first started by playing with boys,” she said. “My brothers would beat us all the time, but I took a liking to it and it eventually made me stronger. My middle school years were when I really started to work out the most and put effort into the game. In high school it kept improving even though it was a big change.”

In her senior season at Highland Baptist, Olivier was expected to control the game for the Lady Bears and was often the most-guarded player on the court. As captain, she flourished under the pressure, but said she is looking forward to being able to play on a team that can share the load.

“To me, it was a little fun knowing that I was going to get face-guarded but still going through all of it and still being able to score like I did,” she said. “It’s definitely going to be a game-changer for me and take a bit of the stress off of me to know that the other girls all want to play at this level.”

The Wildcats went 11-16 last season, losing 90-47 against LSU Shreveport in the first game of the Red River Athletic Conference Tournament

Olivier said she expects to play either point guard or shooting guard, with an opportunity to make the court in her freshman season all down to her work this summer.

“I feel like I have a chance (to play as a freshman), especially if I continue to work over the summer and in preseason,” she said. “I feel like I can definitely work my way into the team there. I don’t think it’s guaranteed now, I still need to go and show what I’m capable of.”

Olivier is also excited about the possibility of having her family attend games, citing the proximity of LCU to home as a contributing factor in her decision to choose the Wildcats over several other interested teams.

“That was a big part in my decision. I’m really kind of a homebody, so having the offer come from a program that’s less than two hours away was awesome,” Olivier explained.

Olivier plans to major in education while at LCU with plans to teach elementary school when she graduates.