{"id":31619,"date":"2017-01-30T14:38:40","date_gmt":"2017-01-30T19:38:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/?p=31619"},"modified":"2017-02-01T08:29:14","modified_gmt":"2017-02-01T13:29:14","slug":"royals-athlete-week-christian-taylor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/2017\/royals-athlete-week-christian-taylor\/","title":{"rendered":"Royals Athlete of the Week: Christian Taylor"},"content":{"rendered":"

After an offseason full of uncertainty, the men\u2019s volleyball team is off to a good start to their 2017 campaign. Among the leaders, sophomore captain Christian Taylor<\/a><\/strong> (Richmond, Va.\/Deep Run) has led the offensive charge for the men as the table-setter.<\/p>\n

Taylor\u00a0gave a stellar performance last weekend during EMU\u2019s home tri-match. As EMU\u2019s setter, Taylor\u00a0averaged 10.29 assists per set over the two matches. In a sweep against Lancaster Bible, he averaged 12.00 assists per set, leading the Royals to hit .492 as a team, their highest total in three years. In a four-set loss to D-II King University, Taylor\u00a0set a career high with two solo blocks and tied his career high with four blocks in total. Offensively, he put up another 36 assists. The sophomore is currently leading the Continental Volleyball Conference with 9.85 assists per set.<\/p>\n

Taylor\u00a0explains\u00a0that getting in the weight room during the offseason\u00a0set him up for this impressive start.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the things that I did this offseason was get in the weight room five to six times a week to better prepare myself for this season,\u201d he said. \u201cAfter putting on fifteen pounds this past offseason I feel much stronger, as compared to last season, and that has helped me take my game to a new level.\u201d With the resignation of former head coach Dominic Porter, the team was left without a coach for a crucial time during the offseason just prior to the start of practice. Taylor\u00a0feels that during that period, the players made strides forward as a unit.<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring that short time without a coach, the team really came together for one common goal,\u201d Taylor\u00a0said. \u201cThat goal was to start a winning tradition here at EMU.\u201d At the start of the season, the Royals sit at 2-2 under new interim coach Ross Madden<\/strong>,\u00a0and 2-0 against D-III opponents.<\/p>\n

\u201cCoach Ross Madden has always been known around the volleyball world as a winner and he is doing the right things in order to get us to that point this season,\u201d Taylor\u00a0said. Despite being an underclassman, Madden named him a captain\u00a0during the early stages of the season.<\/p>\n

\u201cChristian is one of the hardest working and kindest gentlemen attending EMU,\u201d said Madden. \u201cHe shows great sportsmanship on the court. I’ve seen Christian give five to opponents who made impressive plays. That’s the kind of person you want calling the plays, which as setter, is Christian’s responsibility.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBeing named a captain as a sophomore has been a huge honor to me,\u201d Taylor\u00a0said. \u201cBeing a leader of this team is something that I take great pride in.\u201d\u00a0Taylor\u00a0is a double major in Business Administration and Recreational Leadership and Sport Promotion. He plans to work in athletics after graduating\u00a0and says\u00a0that collegiate athletics\u00a0have helped him immensely.<\/p>\n

\u201cPlaying volleyball has taught me key leadership and communication skills that have helped me become a better student in the classroom here at EMU,\u201d\u00a0said Taylor.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After an offseason full of uncertainty, the men\u2019s volleyball team is off to a good start to their 2017 campaign. Among the leaders, sophomore captain Christian Taylor (Richmond, Va.\/Deep Run) ... read more about Royals Athlete of the Week: Christian Taylor<\/span><\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":258,"featured_media":31620,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4516,5633],"tags":[17584],"feature":[],"class_list":["post-31619","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-athletics","category-mens-volleyball","tag-ross-madden"],"yoast_head":"\nRoyals Athlete of the Week: Christian Taylor - EMU News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/2017\/royals-athlete-week-christian-taylor\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Royals Athlete of the Week: Christian Taylor - EMU News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"After an offseason full of uncertainty, the men\u2019s volleyball team is off to a good start to their 2017 campaign. 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