Junior Rachael Taylor and the NC State women’s golf team are prepared to exhibit their hard work at the NCAA Regional at Lonnie Poole Golf Course May 7-9 after tying for 8th place at the ACC Championship this weekend in Greensboro.
Taylor finished behind freshman Cecily Overbey for the Pack this past weekend, carding a final score of 219 and finishing tied at 21st place.
The Wolfpack placed third at both the ACC Championship and the NCAA Regional last year and is looking to maintain its reputation. The team now awaits the NCAA Women’s Golf Selection Show, which will air April 27, to find out if it’s made the cut this season.
“We just need to stay focused and stay motivated,” Taylor said. “We’re a very fun team and we’re all very supportive of each other. As long we can have fun at the same time, we’re going to have a good finish to the season. Everyone is excited.”
Taylor is ranked No. 2 for the Wolfpack and is ready to help her team during what head coach Page Marsh calls “crunch time.”
“I’m really confident; not in an arrogant way,” Taylor said. “I can see my hard work is really paying off, and my teammate’s hard work is paying off. I’m in a good mindset.”
The ladies of Wolfpack golf recently received two titles, Performance of the Year and Team of the Year, at the “Wolfie Awards” for last year’s historic run. That team took 10th at the NCAA Championship, the program’s highest ever finish. Taylor attributes it to the team’s chemistry and practice on the golf course.
“Two of the girls who were on the team last season contributed a lot,” Taylor said. “One recently won a tournament and one is turning pro in August. Seeing them be successful has helped us.”
The sports management major says she utilizes the help of NC State sports psychologist Michelle Joshua to help her maintain her golf mentality.
“Golf isn’t as easy as people think,” Taylor said. “I’m working on staying positive, moving forward, instead of focusing on the mistakes.”
Having a home course advantage certainly will help Taylor when the Wolfpack hosts NCAA Regionals the second weekend of May. She also will use her international skills to take on the competition.
“The courses don’t compare [international to here],” Taylor said. “They’re completely different; layout, grass, everything. Playing internationally has helped me a lot. It gave me more experience on different types of courses, especially in Scotland with the weather. Constantly playing against the best players in college also helps.”
Taylor was born in Scotland but moved to Germany when she was very young. Her father is a golf professional at the Bad Griesbach Resort in Germany.
“While my dad was a big influence, he never pushed me,” Taylor said. “He let me do what I wanted to do. I played volleyball, I’ve done karate, but I felt golf was really important to me and I could see myself going far with it.”
The junior saw success even before her days at NC State. Between 2009 and 2012, Taylor had amassed 26 tournament titles at the international level. She represented Scotland and Germany in a variety of competitions.
“I started playing golf at 12 but I started getting serious at 16,” Taylor said. “I started playing international tournaments. I met some college coaches and kept in contact. It just kind of worked out that I kept in touch with an NC State assistant coach and came here.”
Taylor has been consistently one of the team leaders in tournaments, alongside senior Lindsay McGetrick.
In the LSU Golf Classic at the end of March, Taylor tied with McGetrick for 36th place, carding scores of 74, 78 and 80 during the tournament.
In the Bryan National Collegiate at the beginning of this month, Taylor did it again. She tied at 31st, four strokes shy of her senior teammate, with scores of 74, 77 and 79.
With the season heading toward its close, Taylor and the rest of the Pack will look to live up to the high standards set by last year’s historic team.
