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Manuel joins Show-Me Idols
Bill Gunn
St.
Louis--Helping the Incarnate Word to a pair of twenty win seasons,
including a Class 5 championship as a junior, and a third place finish
this season 6-foot-3 inch senior forward
Taylor Manuel played a part
in every aspect of Red Knight success.
Manuel, named
Sunday by the Missouri Basketball Coaches Association as Miss Show-Me
Basketball, had an outstanding season averaging 15.6 points per game,
9.5 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 2.9 blocks, and 2.0 steals.
Contributing
more than just basketball statistics, Incarnate Word head coach
Dan Rolfes was excited to
hear his talented senior had earned the state’s top basketball award.
“She is so well deserving of this honor”, commented Rolfes.
“She is one of the best kids I have been fortunate enough to
coach.”
“She was so
valuable for our team, doing so many things well.
She led us in scoring, rebounding, and assists. She is so
versatile, she was able to take it coast to coast, and at her size she
is so skilled.”
A
multi-dimensional talent, Manuel found different ways each night to help
the Red Knights earn success. “Taylor makes everyone around her better,
she has amazing court vision, is a great passer, and can really pass off
the dribble, always thinking one pass ahead’, added Rolfes.
Manuel will play
basketball in college at Purdue University where she plans to major in
Communications.
“She has the
skill to excel at the next level”, added Rolfes.
“She will make an early impact; it really depends on how well she
catches on to their style of play.”
“She always had
great questions and great ideas here during scouts and practices.
She will adjust quickly and make an impact at Purdue and in the
Big 10.”
“I worked hard
throughout high school on the court, but also with academics”, commented
Manual who is excited to join a family of three other recruits and the
Boilermaker coaching staff next year at Purdue
Purdue head
coach Sharon Versyp was
excited to add Manuel to her recruiting class. "Taylor
is a gifted athlete who possesses guard-like skills which are impressive
to see because of her size”, commented Versyp.
“She has good footwork and is fun to watch when she grabs the
rebound and brings the ball down the court with the ability to score the
ball or set up others. She is a skillful passer and has an awareness of
her surroundings on the court more like a guard than a post player.
However, she can score down low with power, as well as show finesse away
from the basket. Her ability to rebound, score and to take charges will
make us better day in and day out."
Manuel loves
basketball and hopes to stay involved in the game using her degree for
the rest of her life.
Joining a list
of some of the best basketball players to hail from Missouri since the
first award was handed out back in 1985, Manual said she was humbled to
be named among players she has grown up watching.
“To be in the
same category as Incarnate graduate April McKinney (1997 Miss Show-Me)
or Shakira Jones (2007 Miss Show-Me) is such an honor.
“I grew up watching Shakira before she went to Missouri and April
was such an outstanding player.
“I am very excited, and really happy” to receive the highest
honor in the Show-Me State”, added Manuel.
On the court
Manuel was an inspiration throughout her career to those who coached
her, played with her, and watched her play.
Now she joins the list of the best in Missouri, the list of
players she once idolized.