The largest Jewish youth event in the world, the JCC Maccabi Campus Games, is taking place in Pittsburgh from Aug. 3-8. Nearly 2,000 Jewish athletes will come to the University of Pittsburgh’s campus to compete in 13 different sporting events, with delegations hailing from North America, the United Kingdom and Israel.
About 150 local athletes and coaches will be among those competing in track, soccer, basketball, hockey, swimming, tennis, softball, volleyball, baseball and dance. Additionally, several local teens will be working the games as “star reporters,” covering the action as it unfolds.
Dayna Greenfield
Dayna Greenfield began coaching basketball when she was a teenager.At age 13, she began her coaching career at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh in Squirrel Hill—the same place where her playing career began.
“I was given a ball and I started playing,” she recalled.
In addition to playing basketball at the JCC as a youth, Greenfield played for Taylor Allderdice High School, Clark University, and Washington and Jefferson College.
After playing in the Maccabi Games for four years, she gained a new perspective on the games and began coaching Maccabi teams, which she has done for several years.
Greenfield is the head coach of Pittsburgh’s 17U boys basketball team at this year’s JCC Maccabi Games. When asked about her strategy for this tournament, she stressed that it is not always the most skilled teams that find success at the Maccabi Games.
“It’s the nitty gritty. Who’s going to fight the hardest and push through, like, the third game of the second day?” she said.
Greenfield emphasized the importance of defensive cohesiveness as well as imposing your style of play on the opposing team. This tournament, she said, favors those teams that play a consistent style, game after game.
Greenfield, who was inducted into the 2017 Jewish Sports Hall of Fame of Western Pennsylvania, explained why she has been drawn to basketball her whole life.
“There’s always something going on,” she said. “You’re part of the action on both sides of the court. So, you know, you can make a difference every play.”
Loving the sport of basketball was not really a choice for Greenfield. “I was born in March,” she said. “My dad would feed me and watch March Madness all night long.”
Zane Schachter
Zane Schachter, a 16-year-old Allderdice student, is playing in his third Maccabi Games this summer. Zane played basketball in the 2023 games in Fort Lauderdale and the 2024 games in Detroit.Zane’s team placed second overall at the 2023 tournament before being eliminated in the quarterfinals last year in Detroit.
His experience in prior Maccabi Games has prepared him well for this summer, he said. But focusing on the competitive nature of these games, Zane is not taking anything for granted.
He began playing basketball at the age of 3 and has not put the ball down since. His father, who helped get him into the sport, played basketball at the Maccabiah for Israel in 2005.
Zane praised a mentor who has helped him greatly along his basketball journey, Blake Hinson. Hinson played basketball at the University of Pittsburgh from 2022-24.
“He taught me a lot about basketball, and I still keep in touch with him,” Zane said.
Zane is looking to bring his shooting prowess back to the Maccabi Games. He ranks ninth for three-point field goals made in Pittsburgh City high schools, with 10.
“Always shoot with confidence,” Zane said. “And always hold your follow-through.”
Basketball hasn’t been the only sport in Zane’s life. He played baseball until the age of 12, before making the decision, with his father, to focus on basketball. Now, Zane has his mind set on his dreams.
“The goal is to play D1 basketball, and maybe go to the NBA,” Zane said.
For now, his focus is on overcoming that final hump and bringing home a first-place prize.
Emily Olifson
Emily Olifson is a 15-year-old track and field athlete from Fox Chapel High School. This will be her first time competing in the Maccabi Games.“I’m really excited,” she said. “I’m excited to meet Jewish teens that are my age and who are athletes, and have similar interests to me.”
Emily first participated in track as a seventh grader. She didn’t really enjoy the experience then, which propelled her to start playing field hockey, a sport she still plays.
After taking a year off from track in eighth grade, she came back to the sport during her freshman year of high school at the urging of friends.
“I thought it would be a cool opportunity just to do another sport in high school,” Emily said.
When it comes to track, sprinting is where she is most comfortable.
“I like to think to myself, ‘Oh, I’ve already done more than this in the warmup,’” she said.
For her first Maccabi Games, Emily will be running the 100-meter and 200-meter sprints. She is very familiar with these sprints as they are her primary events for Fox Chapel High School.
Emily will have her eyes forward and her legs moving as she looks for success in her first Maccabi Games.
And she will not be the only member of the Olifson family represented at the tournament.
Eli Olifson
Eli Olifson, a 16-year-old baseball player, is also making his debut at the largest Jewish youth sporting event in the world this summer. Eli is playing for the 17U boys baseball team and is looking to bring his lengthy baseball experience to the table.He began playing baseball when he was 3 years old.
“I think my parents took me to a Pirates game, and then I started asking them all these questions about it, and they had never played before,” Eli said. “They started researching the rules and then signed me up for a T-ball league.”
Eli, who also attends Fox Chapel High School, plays on the varsity baseball team in the spring, but the summer season is his favorite.
“There’s teams in the summer where I play with kids from schools all over Pittsburgh,” he said. “I could just play Fox Chapel in the spring, but I feel like the summer season is the best because you get to meet people from all over the city.”
For his varsity team, Eli has played in the outfield and has also done some pitching. However, an elbow injury sustained while playing for his club team has limited his pitching ability recently. For the Maccabi Games, Eli hopes to play second base, where he has found his game.
“I’ve had the most fun there, because you get a lot more action than in the outfield,” Eli said.
Being one of only a few 17U baseball players from Pittsburgh in the tournament, Eli will have new teammates on the diamond.
“What I’m most excited for is the stuff outside of the sport and just getting to know everyone and hopefully making new relationships with people from around the country,” he said.
The 2025 JCC Maccabi Games kick off on Aug. 3 on the University of Pittsburgh’s campus.
Reprinted with permission from the Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle.
