Alivia Landy

Alivia Landy says she’s been playing basketball since she was six years old. But that was just organized basketball. The sport has deep roots in her family and created numerous childhood memories between her and her twin brother.

Throughout her childhood, there was always a basketball hoop around the Landy house. From the small plastic hoop in the house to the quintessential driveway hoop that hosted many brother/sister matchups, basketball was and still is a constant in the Landy house. “That’s where my drive to win and hatred to lose comes from,” Landy said. “I always want to do the best I can and leave everything on the court.”

Landy says her parents used basketball to teach her the value of hard work. “My parents have always told me that if I work hard, I’ll get what I want,” Landy said. All that work has paid off for Landy, who certainly got what she wanted out of the game. She scored over 1,000 points for Columbia High School, finished with the second-most points and rebounds in school history, and set school records in games played, free throws made, and free throw shooting percentage. She was named a First Team Suburban Council All-Star, and following her senior year, was named First Team NYS All State, First Team Times Union All Star, and MVP of the Suburban Council All-Star team.

“Alivia is the single best athlete I’ve coached in 30 years of being a basketball coach of both boys and girls,” said Shay Harrison, Columbia varsity girls basketball coach. “She is also one of the three or four most intense competitors I’ve coached. This combination has enabled her to create an indelible mark on the Columbia girls basketball program.”

That work ethic was evident in other sports as well. Landy was also Third Team NYS All-State in volleyball and the Section 2 player of the year in flag football. While she played and excelled at three different sports in high school, Landy says that nothing compares to her love for basketball. “I could be around basketball my whole life and never get bored of it. No one has ever had to tell me to train for basketball, and that’s how I know basketball is my favorite sport.”

Landy also took the opportunity to coach her favorite sport. She volunteered as a student coach for the Unified basketball team, giving her the chance to share what she’s learned on the court with other players. “I thought it’d be interesting to be a coach for basketball. Once I got involved in Unified basketball, I really enjoyed working with the kids and teaching them what I know. That showed me that I like coaching basketball almost as much as I like playing it.”

Landy’s hard work isn’t just limited to the athletic sphere. She is a member of the National Honor Society and graduated with a 95.5 final rank weighted average. This fall, Landy will head to Staten Island to study at Wagner College and compete on the basketball team. While taking on the new challenge of NCAA Division I basketball, she will also be studying nursing in preparation for a career in medicine.

“I really just want to work in the medical field,” Landy said. “I couldn’t do the PA program while playing basketball, so I chose the nursing program. I still want to go to medical school after I finish my undergraduate degree.”

At the heart of Landy’s motivation to study medicine is a desire to help. “I like being in an environment where people are helping people who are at their lowest,” she said.

Alivia Landy’s desire to work hard and help people is evident in both her athletic career and personal life. It’s why coach Harrison summarized Landy as “everything you can ask for in a star player: driven, passionate about winning, intelligent both on and off the court, receptive to all manner of coaching from X’s and O’s to mental preparation, a vocal leader, a supporter of all her teammates regardless of their role on the team, conscientious in her responsibilities, and to top it off a really good person.”