After an All-America season at Francis Marion, Lauryn Taylor has been named the Conference Carolinas Female Athlete of the Year for the 2023-24 academic year.
A native of Blythewood, S.C., Taylor earned All-America recognition from two different organizations following this past season. The 5-foot-11 post player finished second in the conference in scoring at 17.7 points per game and led the nation in rebounding at 15.0 rebounds per contest. She also ranked third in NCAA Division II in double-doubles with 22.
"To even be in the conversation for Conference Carolinas' Female Athlete of the Year is amazing, but to actually be blessed enough to win the award means a lot to me," Taylor said. "I'm just grateful to be able to represent a great conference and to be able to elevate this conference through this award. I believe this could be a building block to growing Conference Carolinas and women's sports at the D2 level.
"My senior year at FMU was nothing short of amazing," continued Taylor. "Even with all of the tough battles I've faced, I was surrounded by a group of great people that cared about me more as a person than they did as an athlete. I achieved a lot in that one year alone, but I credit a lot of my success to the great community surrounding Francis Marion."
She was named both the Conference Carolinas' Player of the Year (for the second time) and the Defensive Player of the Year for 2023-24. A three-time All-Conference selection, she also earned Academic All-Conference Team recognition twice as a psychology major and graduated cum laude this past May with a bachelor of science degree.
She shot 45.5 percent from the floor, including 32.5 percent from three-point range, and hit 67.3 percent of her free throw attempts. Taylor posted 12 games of 20 or more points, and on Feb. 15 against North Greenville University, she set the NCAA (all divisions) single-game rebounding record with 43.
Taylor led Francis Marion to a 20-8 record, the team's second straight 20-win season. She is ninth on the school's career scoring list with 1,644 points and sixth in career rebounds with 1,023, while totaling 49 career double-doubles.
"This award only addresses a part of what Lauryn meant to our program this past year," said FMU head coach Jeri Porter. "Her commitment to our vision and her dedication to our process made her valuable in ways far greater than her talent ever could. She walks away with many accolades and awards, but she should also be proud of the relationships and the culture that she has helped to build at Francis Marion. I hope people understand her value to us as a teammate and a friend was far greater than her stats line."
Taylor is a graduate of Spring Valley High School and the first FMU player to earn this award.
The Athlete of the Year Award (one male and one female each year) is the most outstanding student-athlete for the year in the league, which sponsors 14 women's sports, and is based solely on athletically-related criteria.
Lauryn Taylor named Conference Carolinas Female Athlete of the Year
The Spring Valley graduate, who will play her fifth year at Florida Gulf Coast, is one of the most decorated players in the history of Francis Marion basketball.