From Bronco to Bendigo: Pollerd's dream start to WNBL career

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The sharpshooting Olivia Pollerd has found herself in the perfect environment to start her professional career after a stellar four-year college tenure with the forward joining the defending WNBL champions Bendigo Spirit.

After transferring from Washington to Santa Clara for her sophomore year, Pollerd became one of the focal points for the Broncos offence and in her fourth and final college season (2024-25) averaged 16 points, 6.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.8 blocks per game, highlighting her all-round game.

Hailing from Victoria, Pollerd grew up watching the WNBL and it’s a full-circle moment for the 22-year-old forward to now be playing in that very league.

“I grew up watching the league, and now to be a part of it, even just playing with players like Kelsey Griffin who when I was little I was watching and now she’s my teammate,” Pollerd told basketball.com.au.

“It's super surreal.

“My time in America was amazing, I loved my experience in Santa Clara but I'm really excited to play in the WNBL, it's such a prestigious league with so many good players.”

Having leaders around like five-time champions in Griffin and Marianna Tolo is everything Pollerd could have hoped for in her WNBL rookie season and she’s ready to learn from the best, both on and off the court.

“It’s such a great tool to learn from them every day, and that was such a big reason for me coming to Bendigo,” she said.

“I’m just trying to be a sponge and soak up as much as I can from them because they just have a wealth of knowledge in basketball.

“They're such great human beings too, so it's not only easy but it's so great to learn off them because it's really enjoyable.”

Spirit head coach Kennedy Kereama spoke about the "apprenticeship" both Pollerd and Kelsey Rees - who is also in her rookie WNBL season after returning from college – will get to experience in Bendigo.

“It's a great apprenticeship from their perspective to come in and learn from two of the most experienced fours and fives in the league,” Kereama said.

“[Tolo and Griffin] are two people who've had nothing but success throughout their entire careers in the sport.”

In her WNBL debut, Pollerd played 13 strong minutes against Townsville on the weekend and her ability to defend was on full display, highlighted by a block on a driving Lucy Olsen in the paint.

It was there for everyone to see that Pollerd will have an immediate impact.

The way Pollerd’s game developed while at Santa Clara was exceptional - from her versatility on offence to the way she can defend and influence defensive possessions blossomed and she hopes to continue that development in Bendigo.

“From when I look back at my freshman year [at Washington] and then my sophomore year at Santa Clara to my senior year, there were just so many elements of building on my game and I definitely found a home at Santa Clara,” she said.

“I think that it's going to continue here at Bendigo. The coaches here, there’s just such great development opportunities and I can see myself going on the same path here.”

Despite being on the other side of the world for the past four years, Pollerd was surrounded by Australians at Santa Clara which definitely made the transition easier.

“That was such a special part of Santa Clara,” she said.

“There was always a little bit of home at Santa Clara, my junior year there were five of us, my senior year there were three of us, and most of them were from Melbourne.

“My accent never left because I’d go to training and had people that spoke the same as me.”

Across her college career, Pollerd’s points, rebounds and assists per game grew with each passing season. She also shot a healthy 37.2% from deep and as Bendigo looks to defend their championship, Pollerd’s shooting ability could provide a major boost.

“Bendigo is known as a really good three-point shooting team, so I look forward to being able to add to that,” she said.

“It’s just great because I come to training and everyone is shooting the lights out, so it really pushes me to be better.”

Having challenged the championship favourite Townsville Fire to the brink in their season-opening game, there’s little doubt Bendigo remain a very real threat in season 2025-26, and with Pollerd in the wings, the Spirit possess a major threat both now and into the future.

About the Author

Hayley Wildes is passionate about all things Australian women’s basketball and loves to highlight the stories of players from all levels and competitions across the globe. From our own backyard in the WNBL, to the WNBA and the Opals, and everything in between, Hayley has you covered.