To become a competitive basketball player, Paul Revere Middle School eighth grader Brooklyn Taylor had to have perseverance. She had to learn the ways of the sport and use her skills to gain the respect of her teammates on the AAU team: L.A. Flight.
Her commitment and willingness to heed to her coach’s tutelage helped her become an asset to the team.
“They started to appreciate me being there because I was good at rebounding and they needed somebody like that,” Taylor said. “They hadn’t had that before; it was just all guards.”
Mel Hayes, the coach of the L.A. Flight 14U team lauded her persistence, noting how much her skills improved since she first started with the team.
“She helps us offensively, she helps us defensively,” Hayes said. “What any coach wants to see is growth and I think that Brooklyn is a great example of a player that’s shown a lot of growth.”
Along with L.A. Flight, Taylor plays for the basketball team at Paul Revere and for the basketball team at the Westchester Recreation Center. Paul Revere taught her how to balance sports with school, playing for Westchester helped her learn the importance of adapting to her own talents and limitations.
L.A. Flight allowed her to compete on a high level, she had competed in several tournaments with the team.
“The tournaments are just practice for what you want to do in high school,” Taylor said.
With the Westchester team, Taylor’s coaches are her parents. This was a challenge for her during games with her other teams when her parents would shout out directions to her along with her other coaches.
“I’m starting to overcome it by just tuning them out,” Taylor said, “Overcoming obstacles is something you have to do, especially in basketball.”
For Taylor, being a Student-Athlete means being a student first. With the help from her parents, Taylor was able to become a high achieving student.
“I’ll just get in and watch basketball videos before I do my homework, getting myself in the mindset of “you have to persevere,”” Taylor said. “I think it’s important to have something that you look forward to for after doing your studies.
Her English teacher Berenice Moreno mentioned how Taylor has an “enthusiasm and integrity for learning.”
“Brooklyn is a natural leader,” Moreno said. “She is often the facilitator in group activities and is well liked by her peers.”
Taylor enjoys singing, acting and modeling, she has been part of the school choir for all three years at Paul Revere.
“I thought it was really nice to be able to have choir to go to every single day, something I look forward to,” Taylor said. “Acting is something I would recommend to everybody.”
Taylor is vice president at Paul Revere, she has a mindset of giving back and wanted to encourage others to do so. She created a club to donate money and goods to the homeless.
“Community Service has really taught me a lot about leadership,” Taylor said. “I know I can give back to my community.”
To see more student athletes that we featured, follow @lasentinelnews on Instagram and @thelasentinel on Twitter. If you know a well-rounded student athlete who is involved in their school and community, email [email protected]
