Women\u2019s volleyball player Darby Taylor (BSM \u201919) was on the verge of playing pro overseas before deciding to hit the books instead of the court this fall.<\/p>\n
Taylor graduated in June with a degree in Sport Management and chose to return to Brock University and complete the final year of her Master\u2019s of Business Administration (MBA).<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was extremely important for me to be able to finish my degree first as it didn\u2019t feel right to leave it uncompleted,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
She is focusing her master\u2019s research on the topic of \u2018Women in Coaching\u2019 under Sport Management Assistant Professor Patrick Reid.<\/p>\n
Taylor, a 6-foot-2 outside hitter from Thorold, made her final season with the Badgers a memorable one. She posted nine double-digit kill games throughout the season to help Brock finish first in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) West with a 14-5 record.<\/p>\n
The league recognized Taylor\u2019s contributions, naming her a Second Team OUA All-Star as the Badgers earned their first OUA Final Four appearance since 1990-91. Taylor came up big by leading the team in kills during their Final Four semi-final win over Guelph to punch their ticket to the U SPORTS Women\u2019s Volleyball Championships for the first time in program history, which was ultimately cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n
At Brock\u2019s year-end athletics virtual banquet, Taylor received the David Atkinson Surgite Award for her excellence in both the classroom and competing for Brock women\u2019s volleyball team.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was extremely honoured to receive such a prestigious award,\u201d said Taylor. \u201cI am very grateful. The time management skills you gain from being an athlete and a student is life-long and is definitely worth the struggles along the way.\u201d<\/p>\n
Taylor transferred to Brock in 2016 after overcoming a serious ankle injury while competing in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for a Division 1 volleyball school where she studied accounting.<\/p>\n
She wasn\u2019t completely satisfied with the way her injury was handled and no longer saw her future in the accounting.<\/p>\n
This, coupled with an interest in Sport Management, drew Taylor back to her hometown university.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was able to take a program I was really interested in and have a lot of different opportunities to volunteer and work in [my future] profession,\u201d said Taylor. \u201cThat is something that would have never been available to me if I stayed in the NCAA.\u201d<\/p>\n
The program also allowed her to intern with her favourite basketball team, the Toronto Raptors, during the summer before they won the NBA championship.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s hard to truly understand how great the school environment is at Brock until you are attending,\u201d she said. \u201cPlaying in the OUA is definitely a great experience where you can feel that you are equally focusing on academics.\u201d<\/p>\n
While she excelled in the classroom with top marks, she was also serving up points on the scoreboard.<\/p>\n
Head Coach Steve Delaney recalled his first impression of Taylor\u2019s offensive prowess when he joined the Badgers in 2018.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I first got into the gym with Brock, I saw Darby and she was obviously a really strong attacker, but I didn\u2019t know where I was going to put her in our formation,\u201d said Delaney. \u201cAfter watching her practice I took a chance by putting her on the right side and I\u2019m glad I did. She was a threat with an amazing long, back-of-the-wall serve, which is almost impossible for the opposition to handle.\u201d<\/p>\n
Delaney said the team will miss her presence moving forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think some of the injuries she suffered while playing in the States really helped her mature as a player and as a person,\u201d said Delaney. \u201cShe was dealing with a lot and she was able to overcome it all and put forth a great effort on the court. Darby brought a quiet sense of leadership. It\u2019s going to be hard to replace that. She was a big piece of our puzzle.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t