Baseball is Corey Taylor’s favorite sport. He plays football and basketball but baseball is where the Iola High senior’s heart and future is.
Taylor signed a letter of intent to play baseball for McPherson College in McPherson. McPherson is a four-year NAIA program and a member of the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC).
“They (McPherson College) showed interest in me and really followed my play. That was nice then when I went for a visit. McPherson has new coaches and I’m excited about going in and doing whatever the coaches want me to do to help the team,” Taylor said.
Taylor said first-year head coach Andrew Ehling and his assistants were building a foundation for a winning tradition at McPherson. He said it will be good to be a part of that next year.
Taylor has been a part of the foundation for Iola High School’s baseball program. Last year Iola was in the Southeast Kansas League title hunt to the end of the spring season, losing twice to Pittsburg in the final doubleheader. Pittsburg and Columbus tied for the SEK championship at 13-3 as Iola and Fort Scott tied for third.
“I found Corey during the fall and when we got him on campus for a visit we knew he was the type of student-athlete we wanted in our program at McPherson,” said Jon Hansen, McPherson College assistant baseball coach, in a telephone interview. “Corey is a level-headed individual who knows what he wants for his college career and education.
“Corey is one of the first players we’ve signed. We’ll use him in the field where we need him and we expect him to develop into a solid player for us in his four years here,” Hansen said.
Taylor has played first base, third base and pitcher.
“But my primary position is first base. I’ve played there since I started playing baseball. I think I take a winning mentally and dedication to the sport when I go to McPherson. Plus I believe I go all out all the time and that will help me in helping the team,” Taylor said.
Last year for the IHS Mustangs, Taylor hit .295 with 18 hits and 23 runs batted in. He scored 17 runs and hit three home runs, which tied him with three other players as leaders. He was 6-for-6 for base steals. As a pitcher, Taylor was 1-1 in six appearances, striking out 12, issuing 25 walks and giving up 25 hits.
During the summer, Taylor plays on the Iola American Legion AA baseball teams. Last summer, Taylor helped the Indians post one of the best records in the Iola Post 15 baseball history at 36-14. Iola won its American Legion AA zone tournament to earn a berth in the 2011 American Legion AA State Tournament in which they went 1-2
The Indians won the 2011 Kansas Amateur Baseball Association (KABA) South Division title and took second in the KABA league tournament. The KABA is American Legion area league.
Taylor earned KABA honorable mention as a first baseman. He also pitched for the Indians. He had a .328 batting average on 41 hits that included seven doubles and four home runs. He drove in 45 runs, tying for the team lead, and had four stolen bases.
He is the son of Mike and Terry Taylor of Iola. Taylor plans to pursue a degree in pre-law or criminology.
