Olivia Breen has already received several offers to play Division I college basketball, which is an uncommon feat for any high schooler in Maine.
And she’s not even in high school yet.
Breen, a soon-to-be high school freshman from South Thomaston, spent her eighth grade year at national basketball powerhouse Montverde Academy in Florida. She announced Tuesday on Instagram that she is returning home to Maine to play at Oceanside High School in Rockland.
That social media graphic featured Breen in an Oceanside jersey with the words “coming home” and a post caption saying “back to 207,” a reference to Maine’s area code.
Her father, Matt Breen, is the Oceanside girls basketball coach. He explained Wednesday how a shoulder injury kept her out all season at Montverde this past year, and that she wasn’t cleared for basketball activities until May.
“It was rough for her to miss the season of basketball, but she was in a good place and they took good care of her,” Matt Breen said. “But, you know, we just decided that it would probably be a good idea to come back and kind of get your feet wet here after missing a year, and get going again.”
The 6-foot-2 Breen is 14 years old and has already received three college offers from Boston College, Providence College and Robert Morris in Pennsylvania.
She is not the only talented basketball player in her family returning to Maine for the upcoming season. Her older sister, Bailey Breen, will be a freshman at the University of Maine after choosing the Black Bears among 25 scholarship offers. The older Breen sister also spent the last year at Montverde Academy.
Montverde Academy is the same Florida school where Ace and Cooper Flagg spent part of their high school careers. Like Bailey Breen, Ace Flagg has also returned to Maine for the next step in his basketball journey with the Black Bears this season.
The Oceanside girls made it to the Class B South regional championship game this past year, and Bailey Breen previously helped lead the team to state championships in 2022 and 2024.
Despite that recent success, Matt Breen said the program has been struggling with its participation numbers.
“I’m excited to have her. I think that it’s a process getting back, and I think we can help her through that process,” Breen said about his daughter Olivia joining the team. “She’s also helping us. Our numbers are really bad and our program’s just hanging on by a thread, even with all the success we’ve had. So picking up another quality basketball player will definitely help keep the program going.”
