The Taylor Tandem: Limestone’s Farrar cousins thrive on court

Published 10:30 am Saturday, January 15, 2022

Cousins Taylor Farrar and Taylor Farrar have the same name, are both sophomores and can put up numbers on the court, just at different schools.

The older Taylor, celebrating a birthday recently, known as “Tay Tay,” is a member of the East Limestone Indians girls basketball team.

The younger Taylor, whose birthday is in June, who goes by her given name, is a member of the Clements Lady Colts girls basketball team.

While they share their name, perhaps what they share in common the most is their ability to succeed on the court as leaders in point totals and leaders amongst their peers.

Their leadership abilities, despite only being sophomores, is something that has caught the eyes of their coaches, Coach Jessica Thompson of East Limestone and Coach Grace Newton of Clements.

“She has had to step and take on a big role this year. Last year, she comes in as a freshman, gets pulled up on varsity in the middle of the year and is out there in certain situations. She went from that to having to be the leader of the team,” Thompson said. “That takes a lot of grit to be able to do that.”

“I like that Taylor has really stepped into a leadership role. We challenged her early on, she had a choice, accepted the challenge, stepped up and has been a leader for us,” Newton said. “My favorite part right now is she plays in practice like she plays in a game.”

The two head coaches, who are friends, reached out to each other before the start of the season when they realized they had cousins by the same name playing for their teams.

“Jessica texted me and told me,” Newton said. “She goes ‘I think we have cousins on the team with the same name,’ and I was like ‘what are you talking about?’”

The praise of the Farrar’s toughness goes both ways, as both Taylor and Taylor think highly of the other’s game on the court.

This is high praise for two players who are at or near the top of their team’s scoring totals.

“She is really tough. If she wants to do it, she is going to do it,” Clements’ Taylor said of East’s Taylor. “I just want to have that type of mindset.”

“Her moves are real good. The way she takes it in strong and finishes the ball is real good, too,” East’s Taylor said of Clements’ Taylor. “She has always been that way. We used to play ball with each other in AAU, too. Her attitude is real great on the court.”

East’s Taylor is averaging around 15.7 points per game, leading scorer on the team.

Clements’ Taylor is averaging 11.7 points per game, good enough for second and just behind the leader.

With both Taylors finding themselves in double digits every night, they are frequently the leading scorer on their team on the same night.

They were both the leading scorers on their teams when East Limestone and Clements faced each other earlier this season, in their only 2021-2022 season matchup so far.

However, with the County Tournament right around the corner, they may get a chance to meet on the floor again.

While seeing each other at family gatherings, Taylor and Taylor also keep up over text.

While they are similar in some ways, they are different in others. Such is the case with their favorite athlete.

Clements’ Taylor does not have a favorite athlete. However, Newton said she talks about Kobe Bryant, who is a fitting role model to have for someone described as tough and wanting to have the right mentality.

East’s Taylor said her favorite athlete is Steph Curry, who is a fitting role model to have for someone who is increasingly improving her outside game, according to Thompson.

With both only being sophomores, both Coach Thompson and Coach Newton have two more full seasons with Taylor and Taylor, who have already earned their coach’s trust.

“Beginning of the year, new coach coming in, you never know how each kid responds,” Newton said. “Taylor has come in here and she has bought in and worked hard. She does it in a way that does not hurt anyone else’s feelings. She leads by actions.”

“Taylor does a great job of attacking the rim. The shooting form is there. I like that Taylor never gets down and frustrated. We have worked on this,” Thompson said. “She misses a shot or two, she does not let it affect the rest of her game. She has a lot of toughness.”

East’s Taylor’s next basketball game will be on Jan. 20, at 6:30 p.m., in the County Tournament, where they will play the winner of Ardmore and Tanner.

Clements’ Taylor’s next basketball game will be on Jan. 18, at 6:30 p.m., in the County Tournament, where they will take on West Limestone High School in the first round.