SuburbanOneSports.com recognizes a male and female featured athlete each week. The awards, sponsored by Univest, are given to seniors of good character who are students in good standing that have made significant contributions to their teams. Selections are based on nominations received from coaches, athletic directors and administrators.
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Female Athlete (Week of Jan. 18, 2012)
Taylor Bryant has excelled for the Upper Dublin girls’ basketball team for the past four years. The senior captain, a first team all-league selection as a junior, helped lead the Flying Cardinals to a berth in the state tournament last year. She recently surpassed the 1,000-point plateau. Bryant was thrust into the varsity lineup her freshman season, and she never left. “I threw her into the hot seat because the kids I had weren’t true guards at all, and I said, ‘I’m making a decision the eighth game of the year,’” coach Vince Catanzaro said. “No matter what happened to her I decided to work with her because I figured I’d have another three years. It shows you what she’s made of that not once did she ever complain about anything. I tell the kids all the time how it started with Taylor. I never forget the stuff I went through with her, and I want other kids to be like her.”
Bryant is everything a coach could want from a senior captain. “She will always be the first one to take responsibility,” Catanzaro said. “She’s not one to blame someone else. You never can let down with Taylor because Taylor won’t let you down. She’s a very competitive kid – losing is not an option for Taylor. She’s willing to do whatever it takes to make the team better. She gets along with everyone. She just does what she does to play the game the right way.”
If Bryant were just a basketball player, she would be quite accomplished, but that is just the tip of the iceberg. She is a standout student whose courseload is comprised of all honors and AP classes. She also is an active member of the Spanish Club and Black Student Union. When it came time to choose a college, Bryant, a member of the National Honor Society, put academics well ahead of sports, turning down opportunities to play basketball in favor of the schools academic program as she looks to pursue her dream of one day becoming a veterinarian. Cornell and Penn top her elite list of college choices.
To read Bryant’s complete profile, please click on the following link: http://www.suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/female/taylor-bryant
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Male Athlete (Week of Jan. 18, 2012)
Brennan Weiss lets his actions on the wrestling matt do his talking. Wissahickon coach Anthony Stagliano recalls a match where there was some chirping. “The other guy wanted a shot at him,” the Trojans’ coach said. “A lot of kids would have said something back. Brennan said, ‘No, I’ll let him do the talking.’” Weiss went out on the mat and won the bout. The Trojan senior is making quite a career out of winning. A four-year varsity wrestler, he’s within 10 wins of notching his 100th win. “Brennan does the right thing in all the right places,” Stagliano said. “He’s a good all-around kid, and he leads by example in the room. He’s going to be there for the extra workouts, he’s not going to miss practice. As far as being a captain, he’s doing everything I want out of him, and I couldn’t be (happier). He’s turning into a hard-working blue-collar wrestler, and he’s added some technique this year. He continues to want to learn. He’s the epitome of what you want as a kid and a wrestler.”
Weiss is working toward his goal of earning his first trip to the PIAA State Championships this season, but personal accolades always come second for the senior captain. “My job is to wrestle and to help my teammates out,” he said. “My goal isn’t to be a shining star or to get my name in the paper. My goal is just to be the best I can be and go as far as I can in the postseason.” Weiss also was an outfielder on Wissahickon’s American Conference championship baseball squad last season.
Off the mats, Weiss is taking four AP classes and is a member of the National Honor Society and Future Business Leaders of America. He is an editor of the school newspaper with aspirations of pursuing journalism as a profession.
To view Weiss’s complete profile, please click on the following link: http://www.suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/male/brennan-weiss.
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