At the age of 4, Taylor Borup knew that she wanted to attend the University of North Carolina after cheering for the Tar Heels during the March Madness men’s basketball tournament. She never expected to become a volleyball national player of the week, and she certainly didn’t expect to transfer to Oregon.
Taylor Borup never knew from a young age that she would be in a territory she’d never seen despite her constant travel for volleyball. She discovered that despite being so far away, she’d find a home away from home in the Pacific Northwest. Oregon became a destination that would also share her goal of reaching her highest potential and winning a national championship.
Borup was born in North Carolina and lived there until the age of 5 when her family moved to Leesburg, Virginia. In Leesburg, she grew up on five acres of land on which in the summer she’d be seen driving a golf cart or riding on an all-terrain vehicle. But in the winter you could find her sitting on a tube as her dad pulled her through the snow in an ATV.
At 9, Borup’s parents, Susan and Raymond, would drive her to Loudoun County High School volleyball matches because her favorite player, Morgan Petkovich, was the star of what would be Borup’s future high school team. Borup, a natural lefty, admired Petkovich so much that when she began crafting her volleyball skills, she taught herself to play volleyball right handed.
“If you know anything about volleyball, being left handed is such an advantage,” Susan said.
After winning her first state championship as a freshman, Borup committed to North Carolina at 14 and started her club volleyball career. Borup played for Metro Volleyball Club, which is 36 miles west of her home in Leesburg. A two-hour drive every day to practice was in store for the next four years for Borup and her dad. That drive also built a bond that lasts to this day.
“We’re super close,” Borup said. “It was really nice to have that support.”
Borup continued her stellar career at Loudoun High, becoming the first player in the state of Virginia to win four state championships and two national titles at the club level.
“It was really special because each team was so different,” Borup said. “The fact that we could do it every time and win was special.”
In her freshman year at North Carolina, Borup played 29 matches and started seven, landing her on the ACC All-Freshman team. Her sophomore season was plagued with early-season injury, as she only played in 20 sets the entire season.
After two years at North Carolina, Borup wasn’t getting the chance she’d imagined, so it was time for a change. Despite looking at Tennessee, Ohio State and Penn State, she felt Oregon, a place she had never been too, was the team that shared the same aspirations as her.
“I wanted to reach my potential as best as I could and play with a team that had the same goal,” Borup said.
That goal was to win a national championship, and Borup felt she had the best chance at Oregon.  
“When Taylor decided to come here, I was shocked,” Oregon head coach Matt Ulmer said. “It said a lot about our program.”
Borup will look to lead the Ducks down the back stretch of the season with her sights set on the professional level after college; however, her parents think something different is in store for her after volleyball.
“She is obsessed with the weather,” Raymond said. “When she was about 12-13, she told without hesitation, ‘when I am 30, I will do the weather on the weather channel.’”
Borup will have plenty of time later to think about her 30s, but for now she’s focused on a daunting Pac-12 schedule.
Follow Gabriel Ornelas on Twitter @gabe_ornelas