The Trojans were very competitive at both the conference & NAIA level. They won the Hoosier-Buckeye Collegiate Conference (HBCC) title in 1971 & 1973. Throughout the mid to late 70's, the program finished in the top 10 at the NAIA on four occasions.
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| Gordon Pritz HWT |
Pritz was a standout football player and wrestler for the Trojans during his time at Taylor. He made all HBCC honors his sophomore, junior & senior seasons on the gridiron & was a two time HBCC champion on the mat.
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| Glenn Guerin 126 lbs |
A graduate of Randolf High School, add Glenn Guerin to your list of wrestlers that won a national title that never won a state title. His best finish in the New Jersey State tournament was third as a junior & second as a senior. Titles would not elude him during his time at Taylor. A four time HBCC champion Guerin won back to back NAIA titles in 1976 & 1977 after placing fifth as a sophomore in 1975. He graduated with a 128-11 record.
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| Cecil Bergen 150 lbs |
Putting together a record of 118-18 Cecil Bergen won two HBCC titles & two NAIA All American honors in 1975 & 1976 with fourth & sixth place finishes respectively at the NAIA tournament.
Today Bergen works as the Director of Ministry in Marriage & Counseling at Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary.
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| Dana Sorenson 150 lbs |
Sorenson took fourth at the 1972 NAIA tournament. He later became head coach at Taylor.
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| Steve Muterspaw 118 lbs |
A HBCC champion in 1975 & an NAIA All American with a fifth place finish in 1976, Steve Muterspaw put together a record of 95-33.
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| Bob LaFollette 177, 190 lbs |
LaFollette had a standout career for the Trojans winning three HBCC titles & taking runner-up NAIA honors in 1978. He finished fifth in 1980.
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| Drew Whitfield |
Whitfield came to Taylor from Illinois where he finished fourth in the state tournament for Glenbrook South high school in 1974. Competing for the Trojans, Whitfield put together a record of 109-7 winning four HBCC titles. He made the NAIA finals in 1978 & 1979.
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| Todd Whitfield 167 |
As did his brother Drew, Todd Whitfield came to Taylor having finished fourth in the Illinois high school state championships for Glenbrook South. Wrestling for Taylor, he placed seventh in 1979.
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| Gene Keller |
Keller a two time HBCC champion, was the first NAIA qualifier for the Trojans.
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| Jay Tyree |
Tyree a standout on the football team as well as the wrestling team during his time at Taylor. He won two HBCC titles going 54-14.
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| Kevin Sorenson |
A good nick name for Sorenson would have been "Champ" had he ever taken it. He won Four HBCC titles in wrestling, two in track throwing the Javelin & was named All HBCC in football three years straight.
Interesting enough one Taylor Wrestling Team member, Jim Porter has risen to the highest level of the sport. This year marks the 10th USA Olympic Trials in which Porter will serve. This is his 8th team trial where he serves as the medical coordinator and as the world has changed- the first trials where he will be serving as the COVID 19 Coordinator.
ReplyDeleteAwesome! Thank you for the added information.
DeleteInteresting enough one Taylor Wrestling Team member, Jim Porter has risen to the highest level of the sport. This year marks the 10th USA Olympic Trials in which Porter will serve. This is his 8th team trial where he serves as the medical coordinator and as the world has changed- the first trials where he will be serving as the COVID 19 Coordinator.
ReplyDelete