O-R Athlete of the Week: Taylor Shriver
Name: Taylor Shriver
School: Waynesburg
Class: Sophomore
Sport: Track and field
Shriver’s week: The sophomore pole vaulter came away with three victories, the latter one the most impressive.
On Tuesday, April 9, in a meet against Beth-Center, Shriver cleared 9-6 before stopping and repeated the effort in a triangular meet with Brownsville and West Greene two days later.
On Saturday at the Tri-State Track Coaches Association meet held at West Mifflin High School, Shriver cleared 12-0 to win the event in the 34-team field. The height was six inches off the Waynesburg High School record shared by former state champions Marissa Kalsey and Jocelyn Lindsay.
Her winning mark at West Mifflin also was three inches from her personal record of 12-3. Shriver hit that height last summer at Slippery Rock University in the Pennsylvania Junior Olympics.
“I was a little nervous,” said Shriver. “Last year, I cleared 10-6 at West Mifflin and finished fifth or sixth.”
Shriver has been vaulting since the seventh grade and has been working with longtime coach Butch Brunnell and San Hensh, the head women’s coach at West Virginia University.
Not only are they helping her with technique but also with her mindset.
“I tend to overthink things,” she said. “So I’ve been just clearing my mind and run it all out (on the runway).”
She also has simplified her prevault routine.
“I warm up and do some running,” she said. “I want to save energy.”
Shriver finished second in the WPIAL Class AA Championships last year, clearing 11-3. At the state event, she was 16th (10-0).
Shriver also participates in the 100 hurdles, 200 dash, triple jump and 400 relay.
Shriver won her age division in July at the USATF Hershey National Junior Olympic Track & Field Championships at North Carolina A&T University in Greensboro, N.C. She also was a top-20 finisher in the National Indoor Track & Field Championships in New York City.
A taste for excitement: Before taking up the pole vault, Shriver was a gymnast and the vault was her favorite event.
“I always want to try things that put me upside down,” she said with a laugh. “Those type of things excite me.”
One of her favorite ways to get away is to ride her ATV on her grandparents’ farm. She races her brother, Caleb, and sister, Kali, whenever possible.
“I started riding at age 3 or 4,” she said. “You can go fast and you have a certain amount of freedom.”
Compiled by Joe Tuscano