The Rider University wrestling team won six of 10 bouts to defeat the University of Maryland 25-14 Saturday, December 10. The victory was career win number 300 for Rider head coach Gary Taylor. Taylor is one of just three active NCAA wrestling coaches who have compiled 300 career wins all on the Division I level. Of the 21 college wrestling coaches who have ever compiled 300 or more victories, only 12 have won all 300 on the Division I level.

Taylor also becomes the third Rider coach to ever compile 300 victories. Baseball Coach Sonny Pittaro retired after a 34-year Rider career with 766 wins, and long-time tennis coach and athletic director Bob Kilgus owned a record of 322-45.

“I think this validates his mark in wrestling,” said Rider assistant coach John Hangey, who wrestled for Taylor at Rider, earned All-America honors, and is currently in the Rider Athletics Hall of Fame. “It is a pretty lofty milestone. Not many can be that successful. This is a major milestone.”

Taylor, of Greenville, PA, and is now in his 28th season at Rider, now owns a record of 300-161-3. “I have the utmost respect for him for what he has done,” said Hangey, “through hard work and discipline. This shows the character he has instilled in this program.”

Rider has won 13 conference championships and finished runner-up in the Colonial Athletic Association the last two years, and has produced 11 All-American wrestlers. The pinnacle of Taylor's career, however, came in 1997, when the Broncs cracked the top ten in the national poll, and were ranked seventh in the nation over the final five weeks of the season by the Amateur Wrestling News.

“I’ve had hundreds of great guys to work with, and to see them develop into good men with fine families and successful professions, that is what has kept me doing this, and continues to keep me in coaching,” said Taylor.

In 1997, Taylor came home from Nationals with three all-Americans, and added another in each of the next three seasons. Before 1997, Taylor's Broncs were ranked as high as 15th (1982) by the Amateur Wrestling News, and have finished 18th (1980), 20th (1991) and 28th (1983) in the nation at the NCAAs. In 1989 his squad was ranked 20th in the nation in the final dual meet polls, and the 1991 squad was ranked among the top 20 nationally for most of the season.

“There are so many highs and lows in coaching, in any sport, and I think that is why you don’t see many coaches in it as long as I have been coaching,” said Taylor. “But we never got caught up in that. Don’t get me wrong, I hate to lose as much as anybody, but there is nothing as important as the relationships you build with the men in the room.”

In 1996 he escorted nine Broncs to the NCAA National Championships, where only perennial national champion Iowa had more with 10, and finished the dual meet season ranked 24th in the country. In 1993 his Broncs finished the dual meet season ranked 19th in the nation, and finished 26th in Division I at the Nationals.

Against Maryland, Rider senior Chris Marold won by fall to seal the victory. Marold was almost pinned before he scored a reversal and fall. If Marold had been pinned, Rider would have lost the match by one point. “Marold is very good at countering,” said Taylor, “and it is a good thing too because he was in trouble and we needed that win to win the match.”

“He had me cradled, on my back, and he was getting back points,” said Marold. “I was losing 5-4, but I felt comfortable that I wasn’t going to get pinned. I was able to reverse him and pin him.”

“Anytime you hit 100, 200 or now 300 wins it means something,” said Taylor. “I guess it is a milestone that not many reach. It means I’ve been around a long time. I just wish it had come sooner in my career. I don’t like to lose.”

“I knew we needed one more win to lock up the 300th for coach,” said Marold. “I wanted to do that. Three hundred wins is a great milestone in wrestling, and he deserves it. Coach Taylor is such a great guy and a great coach who would do anything for you. He’s very devoted to the team and the program.”

Rider baseball coach Pittaro won nine conference championships, advanced to eight NCAA Regionals and won 10 Coach of the Year awards, while sending 41 players on to the professional ranks in his 34 seasons (1961-2004).

Coach Kilgus served Rider for over 30 years as Athletic Director (1952-66), Tennis Coach (1946-1975) and teacher, compiled 29 consecutive winning seasons and finished with a Rider record 39 straight victories stretching over the 1965, 1966 & 1967 seasons. He won 30 championships in various tournaments, two NCAA Atlantic Coast Championships, seven NAIA District 31 Championships and one ECAC 2 Championship.

Both Pittaro and Kilgus are members of the Rider Athletics Hall of Fame. Coach Taylor seems to be heading in that same direction.