Kathy Taylor Reviews

This is response to the USA Today "Investigation" as well as to some of your reader's feedback. Kathy was our daughter's High School coach a few years prior to her move to SUNY Cortland. Our daughter was not a starter and fought through some injuries on those powerhouse teams. Did our daughter always love her - no - but she fully appreciated that Kathy was motivated to bring out the best in her athletes for the benefit of the TEAM. Had this USA Today Investigative Team interviewed the departing (and many) retained athletes after Syracuse University fired Greg Robinson as football coach, replacing him with Doug Marrone , there would have been a similar one-sided flavor to that article. (A feel-good coach leading an undisciplined program for his polar opposite.) The article holds Colgate out as almost a Mecca for Division I Women's Lax athletes. That is simply not the case, as the team's record over the 13 years prior to Kathy's arrival reflects. Is Division I different from Division III (SUNY Cortland} and II (LeMoyne) ? Absolutely, athletic scholarships to a highly selective, expensive University is a blessing (not without a downside for sure). Did Colgate hope to improve their program? Get more "bang for their buck" with their scholarship money? Did they seek out a coach with a record of success running disciplined programs? I'm guessing the answer to all three is yes. Kathy had athletes from our High School, years after she left, applying to play for her at SUNY Cortland. They and their parents were well aware of her expectations and style. I was glad to see that the limited positive input did include that of an athlete who chose to transfer from SUNY Cortland to LeMoyne in order to finish her career with Kathy. There is no excuse for body shaming and pushing injured athletes back into practice into play - if that is accurate, there must be consequences. But, encouraging an accomplished player to gain strength and weight in order to become an even better athlete? Isn't that in the best interests of the athlete and team? The article shared some background and game stats for some of the better starters for the team. Were they asked to modify their play for the overall benefit of the team? Did they resent this? Some of your readers have also weighed in with gay-shaming? There were some gay athletes on my daughter's team - there was NONE of that. The 6 Seniors were clear on the fact that did not like playing for Kathy. Not mentioned in the article were the circumstances of their prior coach's departure. Given the team's record, one would expect that it was not harmonious. No doubt, resentment for this may have played a part in their acceptance of the transition. To what extent did this attitude metastasize to the rest of the team? Our daughter played for four coaches in High School and College. Would her College program have benefitted from having Kathy as coach, particularly the last two years? Would she have welcomed a return to her disciplined coaching style for improved TEAM success? Absolutely. With attorney involvement on both sides, obtaining more balance for this article would have been difficult. To publish it primarily amplifying the grievances of the athletes who volunteered, with little effort to provide any perspective, feasting on low-hanging fruit, is BAD Journalism!

Kathy Taylor is the best coach I have ever had the pleasure of playing with. She pushed me to my highest potential and never gave up on me even when I wanted to give up on myself. She’s will help you find your greatest potential and that will continue on into your life after college sports.

Coach Kathy Taylor is an awesome coach. The article that came out was from the upperclassmen on the Colgate team who were recruited by the old coach & they didn’t have the same wants for the program that Kathy has and is trying to change; She sees so much potential in our team and genuinely cares about us and wants us to succeed. She really pushes you to be the best player you can be and doesn’t beat around the bush and is old school so what she says can come out sounding harsh, but the advice she gives is helpful, very knowledgeable, and I personally think that people just need to grow thicker skin and stop being so soft. At the end of the day, Colgate is a Division I lacrosse program and people need to realize that playing at this level isn’t for everyone, and that every coach at this level is intense and challenges their athletes, you signed up for it by committing to a DI program. Overall, she’s a great women and what is being spread about her is wrong, she just wants us to be the best players we can be.

Kathy Taylor was one of the best coaches I have ever had. Her experience, grit, and dedication to our team was unstoppable. She not only pushed me and my peers to be better athletes, but thought us countless transferable skills I use everyday in my career. She cares about lacrosse, her team, and pushing you to be the best you can be. Coach Taylor is an advocate for strong women athletes and and I feel honored to have been coached by her.

My experience with Kathy Taylor as a coach was nothing but the best. She shaped me into what I am today and made me strong and determined in every aspect of life. I was so incredibly lucky to play lacrosse for such an amazing woman. She cares for her team while also understanding what we can handle and when to push us to achieve greatness. The skills I learned from her on the lacrosse field carry into my everyday life and now into coaching lacrosse myself.