Plainfield’s Taylor Landfair named Big 10 Women’s Volleyball Player of the Year

Taylor Landfair always has been able to compete on a volleyball court.

But the biggest help to her career may have come when she wasn’t able to be on the court at all.

The 2020 Plainfield Central graduate was the top high school recruit in the country her senior season and decided to take her 6-foot-5 frame and the rest of her talents to the University of Minnesota.

After a strong freshman season for the Gophers, she suffered an abdominal injury that allowed her to play in only nine matches and caused her to redshirt her second season. As a result of the injury, she lost out on playing 23 matches but gained something else.

“I think that sitting out gave me a different perspective,” Landfair said. “I was able to see where people should be on the court and what the other teams’ tendencies were. I was able to relay that to my coaches and teammates.

“I wanted my teammates to know that I was with them 100%, even if I couldn’t be on the court. Now, if someone is hurt and has to miss time, I know what that side of it is like too, and I can tell them what I did when I had to go through it.”

Landfair made a full recovery and has made a remarkable return the Gophers’ lineup.

She recently was named Big 10 Player of the Year after leading the conference and ranking in the top 20 nationally in both points (4.99) and kills (4.43) per set. During the regular season, she posted 26 10-plus kill matches, including 19 15-plus kill matches and five 20-plus kill matches. She collected a career-high 28 kills in a four-set win over Oregon on Sept. 9. She added three 10-plus dig matches and had 10 games with three or more blocks. The sophomore sensation also hit .257 for the year.

In addition, she was named Big 10 Player of the Week on four different occasions and last week was named the American Volleyball Coaches Association National Player of the Week after two big performances in wins over Ohio State and Nebraska on the road.

Over the weekend, Landfair and Minnesota won two matches in the NCAA Tournament to advance to the Sweet 16, defeating Southeast Louisiana and Northern Iowa 3-0. Landfair had nine kills, an ace and a block against Southeast Louisiana and collected a team-high 11 kills in the win over Northern Iowa.

The Gophers travel to Austin, Texas, where they will play Big Ten rival Ohio State on Thursday in the Sweet 16. A total of five teams from the Big 10 – Minnesota, Ohio State, Wisconsin, Penn State and Nebraska – have reached the Sweet 16.

“Our conference definitely prepares us well for the NCAA Tournament,” Landfair said. “You can’t take plays off. There is so much talent on every team that it’s the little things that will win you the matches.

“For us, a big point in the season was last week when we beat Ohio State and then beat Nebraska on the road. Ohio State had beaten us earlier in the year, but this time we were able to talk to each other better, and there was much better communication. Then after that, we beat Nebraska a couple days later. So we know we can beat those teams now if we play them again.”

During the rehab from her injury, Landfair said she went back to the basics and eventually added some shots to her arsenal.

“The best part of my game is my offense,” she said. “When I was working my way back from my injury, I put a lot of work into my backswing, and I was able to correct some deficiencies I had there. When I was coming out of high school, I would say I had two shots that I was really good at. Now, I have four or five, maybe six.

“It helps keep the other teams guessing, because they don’t know what kind of shot I am going to hit.”

Success hasn’t come just on the court for Landfair. She was also named to the CSC Academic All-District team. She has a double major in Graphic Design/Business & Marketing and Education, with a minor in Sustainability. She plans to go into a career in one of those fields, but not before a possible international appearance. She was named to USA Volleyball’s Youth National team and was the youngest player on USA Volleyball’s 2017 FIVB 18U World Championship team.

“I really enjoyed being on Team USA and training with them,” she said. “I hope to make the Olympic team and play in the Olympics one day.”