A Midlothian, Virginia native, Shannon Taylor began her collegiate field hockey career at Richmond, where she was a first-team all conference selection in 2005 and the Atlantic 10 Conference Field Hockey Offensive Player of the Year in 2006. Following that, Taylor became a member of the US National Program U21 squad and decided to transfer to Syracuse for her senior season.
After redshirting during the 2007 season, Taylor had a spectacular senior season at Syracuse, leading the nation in goals (31) and points (79) and earning All-America First Team and All-Big East First team honors in 2008. Taylor was named to the U.S. Women’s Development squad in 2009 and then subsequently named to the U.S. Women’s National Team in 2010. She helped the 2011 Pan American Team to their first-ever gold medal with a first-place finish in Guadalajara, Mexico, thus qualifying the team for the 2012 London Olympic Games. During the summer of 2012, Taylor became an Assistant Field Hockey Coach at the University of Massachusetts.
