Taylor Zordel follows her special relationship with Brenda Holaday and becomes a full-time trainer at Washburn

TOPEKA, Kansas (WIBW) – Taylor Zordel of Topeka has been helping out part-time with the Washburn softball team for the past few years.

But now she’ll get to spend a lot more time with the Ichabods and someone she’s known literally from day one.

“Taylor and I have known each other since the beginning of her life. Her mother and I are friends,” said head coach Brenda Holaday.

“To me, she wasn’t just a high school coach or a coach I grew up with. She was in the delivery room when I was born,” Zordel said of Coach Holaday.

Although she started out as a family friend, Brenda Holaday became Taylor’s coach at a young age, when she was about nine.

That relationship continued at Washburn Rural High School, where Taylor played four years as shortstop for Coach Holaday. The two were 6A state champions in 2008.

“She always had a great feel for the game,” Holaday said of Zordel. “She understood what was going on and was always one step ahead of everything that was happening on the field.”

Taylor was named an All-American and MIAA Defensive Player of the Year at Emporia State. She then attended physical therapy school for three years and is now a physical therapist.

But she realized she was missing her softball.

Fortunately, Coach Holaday had become the head coach at Washburn and decided to hire their former star shortstop as a part-time coach to manage the Ichabods’ infield.

“I learned from her. I feel like my coaching style is somewhat similar to hers,” Zordel said of Coach Holaday.

That started over five years ago, and when a full-time position to lead the entire defense recently opened up, Coach Holaday knew who she wanted for the job.

“The kids want to play hard for her. They see the energy and passion she brings and they want to emulate that,” Holaday said.

“I have a fantastic workplace and they know I love doing this,” Zordel said. “They said, ‘Hey, whatever you need, we’ll do it for you.’ So I cut my hours in half so I could be here.”

Coach Holaday has watched Taylor develop and follow in her footsteps as a coach, and now the two will be able to spend even more time together at Gahnstrom Field.

“To be honest, it’s been a blessing to have her in my life. But also to see her grow as an athlete, to see her grow as a person,” coach Holaday said.

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