OLYMPIA, Wash. – Ellabelle Taylor (So.) from The Evergreen State College women's wrestling team is the Evergreen Featured Athlete of the Week for April 16, 2025. Taylor is from Spokane, Washington, where she graduated from Rogers High School.

At Evergreen, she has earned a 26-11 record over the past two seasons. She was 20-7 in 2023-24 and went 6-4 this year with fewer appearances. Even so, she took fourth place at the Cascade Collegiate Conference Championships and qualified for the NAIA Women's Wrestling Championships for the second consecutive year.

During the NAIA Championships, Taylor defeated the #7-seed in the 124-pound weight class, Alyssa Randles from University of Providence (Mont.), 10-7. Taylor lost to the #2 seed in the quarterfinals.

"Last year was rough. I didn't do as well," Taylor said about her trip to the NAIA Championships in 2023-24. "But this year at nationals I did better, and I won two matches. It was also a huge eye-opener for me. It showed me how much more work I need to put in, especially because there are some incredibly talented girls out there."

Taylor also competed at the USA Women's Wrestling Championships in the 57-kilogram weight class of the Under-20 division. She faced a challenging schedule during the event. She went 4-2 overall, losing to the eventual national champion and to the top-seeded wrestler.

In high school, Taylor was a three-sport athlete in cross country, wrestling, and track and field. She won a total of two State Championships in track and field, earning victories in the 100-meter dash and the 4 x 100-meter relay. She also won a State Championship in wrestling in the 115-pound weight class.

"Winning three State titles was the cherry on top of my high school career," Taylor noted. "I have it everything I had, and that helped me realize I could keep going and continue doing what I love."

The desire to keep competing brought Taylor to Evergreen as the women's wrestling team was formed two years ago. She is one of the team's top wrestlers.

"I chose Evergreen because they have a women's wrestling team – not many colleges do," Taylor commented. "Plus, we've got some of the best wrestling coaches here. They've already helped me grow and learn so much as a wrestler. One of my biggest strengths is my double-leg takedown."

She is thrilled to be able to spend a lot of time with her coaches and teammates.

"My favorite part about being on this team is the family we've built," Taylor said. "My teammates and coaches are some of my favorite people. They make me love this sport even more than I already did."

Taylor is preparing for a career as a firefighter.

"My dad was a Wildland firefighter when he was younger, so the only experience I have is the stories he told me," she said. "I haven't found any courses that are specifically for firefighting, but I've been taking some human body classes that may help."

In addition to wrestling for the Geoducks, Taylor does woodworking in her spare time.

"I've taken three of the woodworking classes here at Evergreen," Taylor noted. "I've built a bread box, a piano bench, and I'm working on shaker boxes right now."