Delilah Taylor has always been the kind of athlete who thrives on challenges. For years, she juggled basketball, soccer, and track at Shady Spring High School. But it wasn't until her senior year that she finally stepped onto the wrestling mat—and that decision changed everything.

What started as a late tryout turned into a college opportunity. Taylor has officially signed to join the inaugural women's wrestling team at Concord University, making her part of history for the second time in just a few months. She'll be one of the first athletes to compete for the new program, which was announced in December as Concord's 11th women's sport and 17th overall varsity team.

Taylor is the second signee for head coach Bill Edwards, following Princeton graduate Claire Holt—a 235-pound state champion who later served as an assistant coach at her alma mater. For Taylor, the signing marks the culmination of a journey that almost didn't happen.

For four years, Shady Spring wrestling coach Anthony Shrewsberry tried to convince Taylor to give the sport a try. She always said no. "Just the nature of the sport. You know, scared of getting hurt," Taylor admitted. "It's a rough sport, obviously. I just finally gave it a try, and I fell in love."

Though she didn't officially wrestle until this past winter, Taylor had been following the sport closely. Her boyfriend of two and a half years, Braelen Holstein, was an all-state wrestler for Shrewsberry. That connection, combined with her natural athleticism, made the transition smoother than expected.

"I've been involved in soccer, basketball, track, so I feel like sports kind of come naturally to me," Taylor said. "And I've always had a little bit more strength. I have a stockier build, so wrestling, I just took to it. And I'm a very aggressive team player. So that was a good way to release some anger and stress."

Shady Spring was among the first schools in the area to embrace the growing movement for girls wrestling. That push paid off in February when the West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission approved it as a preliminary sanctioned sport starting in the 2026-27 academic year. Just before that, the SSAC held regional qualifying tournaments for girls for the first time—and Taylor was there, representing the Tigers at the South Region tournament.

She advanced to the 185-pound championship match, where she was pinned by Greenbrier East's Makaylee Bennett. They met again in the fifth-place match at the state tournament, with the same result. Still, Taylor finished her only season with a 22-12 record and an all-state honor.

"I have recruited her since she started ninth grade," Shrewsberry said. "I finally got her to come out as a senior and she was a natural."

With graduation on the horizon, Taylor is already looking ahead to her next chapter. She'll soon trade her Shady Spring singlet for Concord's colors, ready to help build a program from the ground up. For someone who waited until her final year to try wrestling, it turns out the timing was perfect.