Taylor Meeks
Orting High School / Oregon State University
2013
Wrestling
An outstanding sophomore season has set up Taylor Meeks for even greater things in his final two years of eligibility. A native of Puyallup, Meeks parlayed a dominant high school wrestling career at Orting into a spot on the NCAA Div. I Oregon State squad.
After qualifying for the NCAA Tournament and finishing as the Pac-12 runner-up as a freshman, Meeks claimed a spot atop the conference leaderboard in 2013. He finished the year with a 36-7 overall record, including 14-1 in dual competition, and finished the Pac-12 championships with a perfect 3-0 mark to earn the 197-lb. championship.
Meeks was nationally ranked for the entire season, sitting no lower than 13th and climbing as high as fifth in his respective weight class rankings. He capped the season with a 5-2 record at the NCAA Championships in Des Moines, Iowa, including a pair of pins and a major decision victory to finish fourth and earn All-America honors.
Meeks posted strong performances in tournaments throughout the season, placing first at the Mike Clock Open, second at the Reno Tournament of Champions and third at the Midlands Championships. He received three awards at the team’s postseason banquet, including Most Pins, All-American Award and Most Outstanding Wrestler.
A four-year prep career yielded three state championships for Meeks. He posted a 112-1 record over his final three years and graduated from Orting with a 146-5 career mark and 87 total pins. He spent all four years nationally ranked by USA Wrestling and Win Magazine and was named both TAC Male Athlete of the Year and Tacoma News Tribune Wrestler of the Year in 2010.
After qualifying for the NCAA Tournament and finishing as the Pac-12 runner-up as a freshman, Meeks claimed a spot atop the conference leaderboard in 2013. He finished the year with a 36-7 overall record, including 14-1 in dual competition, and finished the Pac-12 championships with a perfect 3-0 mark to earn the 197-lb. championship.
Meeks was nationally ranked for the entire season, sitting no lower than 13th and climbing as high as fifth in his respective weight class rankings. He capped the season with a 5-2 record at the NCAA Championships in Des Moines, Iowa, including a pair of pins and a major decision victory to finish fourth and earn All-America honors.
Meeks posted strong performances in tournaments throughout the season, placing first at the Mike Clock Open, second at the Reno Tournament of Champions and third at the Midlands Championships. He received three awards at the team’s postseason banquet, including Most Pins, All-American Award and Most Outstanding Wrestler.
A four-year prep career yielded three state championships for Meeks. He posted a 112-1 record over his final three years and graduated from Orting with a 146-5 career mark and 87 total pins. He spent all four years nationally ranked by USA Wrestling and Win Magazine and was named both TAC Male Athlete of the Year and Tacoma News Tribune Wrestler of the Year in 2010.