When Kaylee Taylor (11) first stepped into the halls of CPHS, she had no idea that in less than two years, she would be an integral part of the girls’ wrestling team. Having originally tried out for goalie on the soccer team but not making it, her friend pulled her into the world of wrestling.

“After the third practice, I realized I really love and enjoy doing this. Because of the group of girls that we had, it was really nice.” Taylor said. “I enjoy working at something that I like and can see with visible results in.”

During her sophomore year on the team, Taylor noticed that there were only eight girls on the team so she set out to do something about it.

“Our team went from eight girls last year to almost 30 girls this year. 
That’s kind of been like my big achievement, getting like a larger team, a full lineup, and having the team grow so we can continue to develop as a program.” Taylor said. “We went from eight girls on the team to being ranked seventh in the state, which is pretty cool.”

Taylor’s wrestling journey did not come without challenges as last summer she sprained her ankle causing her to miss nearly the entirety of her off season.

“Over the summer, I sprained my ankle really badly, so I missed almost my entire off season, which kind of broke my heart into little pieces.” Taylor said. “It was just getting back into lifting and getting back into wrestling itself after like I sprained my ankle and missed so much.”

This injury was not her first challenge as back in her freshman year Taylor struggled to win matches but the challenge only encouraged her to keep going. This experience got Taylor thinking about psychology which she eventually realized was a field she would want to pursue in college.

“I find myself to be a very resilient person because my entire freshman season I lost every match. It was hard to go back to practice after every single tournament when I was losing, losing and losing but I was continuing to keep going,” Taylor said. “I want to study the psychological thing of how somebody can have that level of grit versus somebody who gives up.”

Though she didn’t expect it, Taylors life has been impacted by wrestling as she found her passion for psychology through it. Outside of wrestling, Taylor is involved in Pulse, student council, and NHS.