Sports

Women's basketball set to return to Odle

Basketball season is fast approaching here at Taylor University.  The women’s team finished last season with a record of 15-13 (8-6 in Crossroads League). Last season was a bit of a heart-breaker for coach Jody Martinez. 

Jack Attack: Group of 5 deserves respect

Many people complain that the current college football world is not competitive enough. Six of the last 10 national champions have been from the SEC, a Power 5 conference. Of the other four champions, the ACC, another Power 5 conference, has accounted for three of those champions with Ohio State being the other winner from the Big Ten, also a Power 5 conference.

Taylor volleyball wins thriller over Marian University

The No. 13 Trojans took down the No. 17 Marian Knights 3-1 (24-26, 25-22, 25-22, 25-23) on September 30 in a hard-fought game where each point was a back-and-forth battle. This game extended Taylor’s current win streak to four and continued their undefeated run at home as the Trojans are now 10–0 when playing in Odle Arena (11-0 after defeating Spring Arbor on October 5).

Women’s XC cruises to program record

The women’s cross country team, fresh off two consecutive event wins, added to their dominant season by capturing the title Oct. 1 at the Louisville Cross Country Classic. Program history was rewritten, with the previous team time record being surpassed by 23 seconds and freshman Noel VanderWall setting an individual record time of 17:34.6.

Volleyball wins an instant classic against cross-county rival

In a five-set match for the ages, No. 13 Taylor beat No. 11 Indiana Wesleyan 3-2 on Sept. 24 in a rowdy Odle Arena. Coming into the match, Taylor played two games that week, a five-set loss to Saint Francis and a sweep over Huntington. “The Saint Francis game showed us that we were starting to get complacent, and we walked into that gym assuming we were going to win without a fight,” junior Anna Frey said.

Men's soccer starts up conference play

The Taylor Men’s Soccer team ended the contest against Mount Vernon Nazarene 2-2. This marks the team’s fourth draw this season, with the team at a record of 2-4-4. The Trojans came out aggressive and fired a quick goal in the fifth minute of the game, with senior Sawyer Watterson finding the back of the net. The Cougars then responded with scoring a penalty kick, evening the score.

Sam Wilkinson transitions to the headset for TU football

Despite never playing a live snap for the Taylor football team, senior Sam Wilkinson has had a large impact on the team on and off the field. Wilkinson came to Taylor from Western Boone High School in Thorntown, Indiana where he was an offensive lineman on a state championship winning team in 2018, his senior year. He also drew attention from Franklin College and Eureka College, two NCAA Division III schools, but felt that Taylor was where he needed to be and signed for the Trojans.

Taylor women’s soccer crushing competition

Winning is difficult. The work and mental fortitude it takes to give everything day in and day out is no simple feat. But the Trojans women’s soccer team is making victory look easy. Taylor has started their year with eight straight wins. Everything is clicking for them. They have outshot their opponents 210-53. They have outscored their opponents 23-2. They haven’t allowed a goal in any away games. They have never trailed in a game. Dominance is the storyline thus far for Taylor.

Trojans cross country start hot in fall opener

The No. 4 women’s and No. 20 men’s cross-country teams both competed and performed gallantly on Sept. 9 at the Indiana Wesleyan Twilight Invitational. On the women’s end, freshman Noel VanderWall led the way to a first-place finish and the Trojan men earned sixth place. Both went head-to-head with seven teams in the NAIA Coaches’ Top-25 rankings, 15 schools rounding out the women’s field and 18 the men’s.

Volleyball off to hot start once again and sit inside top-25

The Taylor Trojans’ women’s volleyball team have come into this coming year once again in dominant fashion. In 16 matches played, they have only lost three, falling to teams that have been ranked or are receiving votes to be ranked. The team first took their loss in the Labor Day Classic tournament in early September. They lost the first two matches but came back in dominant fashion winning in three sets for the next two the following day. In that tournament, Senior setter Kacy Bragg amassed 3,000 career assists, the tenth trojan in school history to make this milestone.

Taylor hires Lorne Oke as new golf coach

On August 29th, Lorne Oke was hired as the men’s and women’s head golf coach for Taylor University. Oke takes over two programs that have had incredible success in recent memory with the men’s team winning the past six Crossroads League titles and the women’s team winning four out of the past five, falling just short last season by two strokes.

Trojan football off to solid start in Mingo's second year

Taylor University is off to a hot start for the 2022-2023 season, starting 2-0 for the first time in a decade.  Taylor won their season opener against Lawerence Tech, despite being down at halftime.They won by a score of 27-12, but they truly showed what they were capable of in their home opener against Judson University. Taylor’s dominating offense racked up 52 points and their stifling defense gave up only six points the entire game. Why was the score so lopsided? 

Athletic Department sees coaching changes

Taylor Athletics underwent multiple coaching changes over the summer, with Erin Bellinger stepping down as head softball coach in May and Cameron Andry stepping down as head men’s and women’s golf coach in July.  Bellinger’s tenure came to an end quickly after the season ended in the NAIA National Championship tournament on May 17. She spent four seasons in the dugout for Taylor and compiled two national tournament bids and 116-career wins. The 2021 season resulted in 43 wins, a program-record. 

Taylor athletics looking to continue momentum

This past spring saw one of the most successful seasons for Taylor University athletics. Six out of the seven teams made it to the postseason with the baseball team even hosting part of the NAIA National tournament. The baseball team went 41-18 last season and won the Crossroads League tournament held at Winterholter Field. Ultimately, the team wouldn’t make it past the opening round of the NAIA national tournament.

Saying goodbye to the back page of The Echo

I can’t say for certain that everyone reading this has any clue who I am. Even weekly readers of The Echo may gloss over sports, and gloss over who’s writing certain stories. 

Counting down the top sports stories of the year

A sense of normalcy returned for Taylor Athletics this past school year. Fans packed into Turner Stadium and Odle Arena again. One of Taylor’s storied traditions also returned this year. Here are the top 5 stories from Taylor Athletics this past school year.

Huseman follows an unexpected path

“I said, word for word, you will never see me as a MAHE student,” senior Noah Huseman said. “Two months later, I applied to MAHE.” These kinds of unexpected switch-ups aren’t uncommon occurrences for the fifth-year senior. His time at Taylor has been defined by doors opening and closing, even when it isn’t obvious. 

Our View: School spirit has value

What is the first thing that comes to mind when one hears the phrase, “school spirit?”

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