Soccer, Basketball
Favorite athlete: Skylar Diggins
Favorite team: New York Giants
Favorite memory competing in sports: Qualifying for states as an underdog to Council Rock South last year.
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: One of my teammates was trying to save the ball from going out of bounds when she tripped over her own two feet, and my other teammate tripped over her while she was laying on the ground.
Music on iPod: Everything from Rihanna, Chris Brown and Ciara to Disney tunes such as High School Musical and The Lion King
Future plans: To go to veterinary school and open up my own animal shelter
Words to live by: ‘Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships.’
One goal before turning 30: To travel all across the world.
One thing people don’t know about me: I love to sing, and I was involved in many musical productions when I was younger.
Taylor Bryant remembers it like it was yesterday.
The Upper Dublin senior – then a freshman swing player – was watching from the bench as the varsity squared off against highly regarded Mount St. Joseph Academy at Philadelphia University when coach Vince Catanzaro suddenly called her number.
“I definitely wasn’t expecting it,” Bryant said. “I had never played varsity before. I was a swing player, and I had not gotten into any games.
“My parents weren’t even there. They came about halfway through the game and were wondering what was happening and why I was in the game.”
Catanzaro had his reasons.
“I threw her into the hot seat because the kids I had weren’t true guards at all, and I said, ‘That’s it. I’m making a decision the eighth game of the year,’” the veteran coach said. “I went with Taylor the rest of the year.
“No matter what happened to her I decided to work with her because I figured I’d have her another (three) years. Actually, it worked out.”
In truth, it couldn’t have worked out any better. Basketball has become Bryant’s sport of choice, and the senior guard is the undisputed leader of a Flying Cardinal squad that is one of the top team’s in the district.
“She matured over time and also learned along the way,” Catanzaro said. “(In sports), there’s no room for you to worry about what you did yesterday. You worry about how much better you can get tomorrow, and each year she learned something that made her better.
“It shows you what she’s made of that not once did she ever complain about anything. She took it all in stride and learned from it.”
Bryant hasn’t just learned, she has excelled. The Upper Dublin senior is approaching the 1,000-point milestone of a stellar career. Last year, Bryant, a first team all-league selection, led the Flying Cardinals to a berth in the state tournament.
“I tell the kids all the time how it started with Taylor,” Catanzaro said. “I always bring it up about her. I never forget the stuff I went through with her, and I want other kids to be like her.”
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.
“You won’t get a better student than her,” Catanzaro said. “She’s just top notch all the way around.”
When it came time to choose a college, Bryant put academics well ahead of sports, turning down opportunities to play basketball in favor of the school’s 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.
“I wanted a school with a good biology program, I wanted a school that was relatively big – definitely bigger than my high school, and I wanted a school that wasn’t too far away from home,” Bryant said. “Not many of the schools that contacted me for basketball fit that criteria.”
Ask Bryant if she was ever tempted to ‘settle’ for a school that would allow her the opportunity to play basketball, and she has an immediate answer.
“No,” she said. “I definitely think academics are a bigger part of what I need to look for in a school.”
Bryant has been interested in pursuing a career in veterinary medicine for a long time and – if she could convince her parents - would bring home every stray animal that crosses her path.
“I probably wanted to do this since I was nine,” she said. “I have always been a person who likes the math and science part, and I love animals, so I want to combine my love of animals with science and math into a career.”
An active member of the National Honor Society, Spanish Club and Black Student Union, Bryant admits it is a challenge to find time in her busy schedule to study.
“It definitely has been hard, but if I didn’t have the sports or other activities, it would be harder because it helps me with time management,” she said. “It feels like I have to get something done in a certain amount of time, so it makes it a lot easier.”
Sports have been a major part of Bryant’s life for as long as she can remember. She began playing soccer at a young age and always believed her future was in soccer. She played club soccer until her junior year and was the center midfielder for her high school squad, earning first team all-league honors as a senior.
Basketball entered the picture in fourth grade, and she began competing on the AAU club circuit in that sport. Eventually, the schedules for the two sports began clashing, and it was basketball that won out.
“I started to like basketball a little bit more, especially after playing in high school,” she said. “I was ready to take it a little more seriously.
“It was a very hard decision. It took a while to make, but I just had to figure out what I liked more and what would work better for me. I just decided to slow it down with soccer, but I still love soccer.”
Bryant’s love of basketball was nurtured when she became part of the high school program at Upper Dublin.
“I loved the team, I loved the coaches,” she said. “It was just a lot more enjoyable than soccer was to me. I felt there was a lot of room to grow on that team and do a lot better.”
In Catanzaro, Bryant found a kindred spirit.
“We understand each other,” she said. “We both share a big love of the game of basketball.
“Every weekend – we don’t plan on seeing each other, but me and Vince will end up at the same basketball games, sitting with each other and just talking about the game.”
Bryant also shares a special bond with her teammates.
“I have known Jen (Myers) since sixth grade, and most of the other girls almost as long,” she said. “We get along and that helps a lot on the court.
“I think everyone wants to win, everyone wants to contribute to the team. No one wants to let their teammates down, so we all work harder to make sure we can do our best as a team.”
Bryant is everything her coach is looking for from a senior captain.
“She will always be the first one to take responsibility,” Catanzaro said. “She’s not one to blame someone else. She’ll be the first one to say, ‘I could have done a lot better,’ or ‘I should have done this instead of that.’
“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. Nine times out of 10, she’s the toughest kid on the floor. She’s willing to do whatever it takes to make the team better.”
Beyond that, according to Catanzaro, Bryant is a class act on and off the court.
“She gets along with everyone, she’s not a girl that mouths off or provokes anyone – she just goes about her business,” the Flying Cardinals’ coach said. “They’re the kind of people you really like. They don’t strut their stuff on the floor or trash talk to anybody.
“She just does what she does to play the game the right way, and that’s a tribute to her mom and dad and the way she was brought up.”
And three years after surprising Bryant by inserting her into the varsity lineup, Catanzaro admits he couldn’t have made a better call. It was a win-win on every side.
