In Aurora and at Waubonsee Community College, it would be difficult to find a young woman who has been as busy and as successful as has Taylor Wyeth.
At its end-of-year banquet, Wyeth received the WCC Vermillion and Gold Award. It is given each year to one person who is a model all-around student athlete, and who is successful in the academic area and is very involved on campus.
“It’s a prestigious award, and she was incredibly deserving of it,” said WCC Athletic Director Dana Wagner. “It indicates what the entire athletic department thought of her.”
A recent graduate of the college, Wyeth’s path to winning the award has been a lifelong journey of dedication and stick-to-itiveness. She is a well-rounded person with many interests outside of athletics, some of which were developed as she progressed through the West Aurora school system.
She was a three-sport athlete (tennis, basketball and softball) during all of her four years at West Aurora High School, notably playing and serving as a captain for three years on the varsity tennis team, and starting occasionally in basketball as a senior. She gave special mention to West Aurora tennis coach Bruce Fraser as being very influential in her growth.
But Wyeth also played clarinet for four years in marching and concert bands, and was a section leader as a junior and senior. Crediting her elementary school art teacher Ms. Wiegert as a mentor, she took art classes and participated in ceramics club at West High, and was a member of the National Art Honor Society.
She took at least one art class each semester at WCC, and plans on majoring in art and education as she enters her four-year college.
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On her own time, she developed a love of the outdoors and all of its activities.
“Our family sometimes visited national and state parks on vacations,” Wyeth said. “The world of the outdoors has so many cool things, and I love hiking, kayaking and swimming.”
During her senior year at West, she applied for the Gustafson Scholarship at WCC. Upon receiving the scholarship, there “was no choice – I was going to Waubonsee,” she said.
What made Wyeth unique among all Waubonsee students over the many years is her becoming one of the very few three-sport female athletes at the school.
“There have been a handful of three-sport female athletes over the years — I can think of three or four, maybe a total of five, and I am starting my 26th year,” Wagner said. “Two sports might be common, but not three.
“Taylor was a friendly and outgoing person, and was a member of our student athlete council. She stuck with three sports as a freshman, and returned as a sophomore and had a tremendous year. I think she almost looked at it as a challenge.”
Wyeth was not planning on a three-sport college career at the start. But at the end of the fall tennis season, her perspective changed.
“I wasn’t doing anything, and I don’t do well when I have nothing to do,” she said. “When I’m busy and under pressure is when I thrive.”
She tried out for and made the basketball team, but almost all of that season was lost to the pandemic. She joined the softball team for the spring but “rode the bench” during almost all of that season.
But, as referenced by Wagner, she stuck to it and returned to all of the sports as a sophomore, and had a memorable year.
Wyeth played first singles and first doubles in tennis, played “quality minutes” in basketball (suffering a concussion along the way), and had a breakout season in softball as an infielder. She hit for a .384 average, and was named as first team All-Conference and second team All-Region.
In the fall, Wyeth will attend Central College in Pella, Iowa, but plans on scaling down to participating in “only” two sports.
“I was only going to play tennis at Central, but decided after this past season to play softball there also,” she said.
Wyeth will major in art and education at the school, and would eventually like to become an elementary or high school art teacher. But she would first like to try working at a national park as a ranger or tour guide.
Her level of ambition and love of challenges tells all of her teachers, coaches, family and friends that she will succeed at almost anything she puts her mind to.
“We were thrilled when she signed her letter of intent at Central College to play both sports,” Wagner said. “She is a wonderful person on and off the court and field, and our coaches were very grateful that she came to Waubonsee.
“I expect to see great things from her as she continues.”
Tom Strong is a freelancer reporter for The Beacon-News.