One more player to highlight in the preliminaries of this column, and it comes as no surprise that its the final piece of 2025’s four-headed monster that we didn’t get to.
Olivia Bent-Cole is often overlooked on a loaded Northwestern roster. The Maddie Zimmers and Ashely Sessas of the world end up soaking up all the credit for leading a prolific attack, while OBC’s name ends up in the cliff notes.
In what could be her final season in a Wildcat uniform, that could all come to an end.
Classified Information
Name: Olivia Bent-Cole
Class: Sr.
Hometown: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Career Stats: 66 PTS | 24 G | 18 A | .183 SH%
Accolades: 2x First Team All-Big Ten | 2025 NFHCA All-American Third Team | 2024 NFHCA All-West Second Team | 2023 NCAA All-Tournament Team
Who Dat?
OBC provided the ‘Cats the consistency they needed last season with 22 points as one of the offense’s best passers.
You can’t tell a defense to keep your head on a swivel to mark Zimmer, Sessa, Ilse Tromp and Bent-Cole on the attack. Instead, you pick the duo who could have a good day and do your best to stymie that. The senior forward found herself the beneficiary of NU’s dynamic set pieces, and the headaches they caused opposing coaches.
The two games that come to mind from a year ago are the conference home opener against Indiana, where she logged a season high four points, and against Ohio State later in the year, when she’d match that total.
Bent-Cole is the ‘Cats’ third-leading returner in the assist category — and in the absence of Zimmer’s vision — she’ll be more crucial than ever for Tracey Fuchs’. There’s a world where she ends the year as NU’s leading assist-getter.
Humility in Droves
What ‘Cats faithful can appreciate about OBC is her malleability in Northwestern’s system.
In 2023, Bent-Cole was one of NU’s most important scorers and was one of three Wildcats to reach double-digits in goals. In the seasons to follow, that number has declined. But it doesn’t mean she wasn’t as productive on offense, rather she’s found her footing in other ways. After a down year in 2024 where she notched 19 points, she came back with 22 in 2025 — more reflective of her breakout first-year season.
OBC could be a no. 1 option on the majority of teams in the nation — even those in the NFHCA top-20. On Northwestern’s roster, that’s not the case, but she still finds a way to contribute.
That’s the mark of humility: the most important trait a coach looks for.
2026 Projections
Bent-Cole will be doing more this year with Northwestern’s turnover, losing Zimmer and Maja Zivojnovic. With a young core of midfielders, she’ll get a large stake in NU’s shot selection alongside Sessa and Tromp. As good as a passer she is, 2026 could be a display of her goal-scoring ability — something we hadn’t seen since her freshman season.
Grab your popcorn. OBC could be interesting this year.
