She was familiar with softball fields, but this particular one was foreign. This new head coach wasn’t just assuming a new role – she was embracing a legacy. Her players laced up their cleats, exchanging nervous glances as they noticed her watchful eyes. Her arrival marked not only just the beginning of a new season, but the dawn of a new era for El Dorado softball.
At the end of the 2024 season, former Head Coach Adrian Telas, resigned his position to focus on furthering his career in education. Stepping up to the plate, new Head Coach Taylor Grohmann is excited to bring a different kind of instruction to the field.
“I plan on building team culture and unity in a variety of ways. One of the things I’m big on is making sure the girls are in a supportive environment,” Grohmann said. “With softball being a game of failure, I want to make sure I’m celebrating the little things as much as the big things. Allowing them to feel that sense of belonging, no matter who you are.”
In high school, she made Back-to-Back Sweet 16 appearances as a pitcher at Americas High School and was named El Paso All-City Player of the year twice. Grohmann went onto play at UTEP for five years and then started her coaching career as a graduate assistant coach on the UTEP staff for two years.
“I grew up playing softball my whole life. I started at the age of ten. I say it all the time, but I really wouldn’t be who or where I am without softball. It has opened up so many doors for me and for that, I’m forever thankful,” Grohmann said.
Most of the prospective varsity team have only been coached by Telas for their whole career at El Dorado. With a female coach taking over, the environment for the softball team will be an unfamiliar feeling with a fresh start.
“Growing up as a softball player myself, one of the main things I told myself when I saw this opportunity was, ‘who do I wish I had when I was younger?’ Being a female and being able to coach them is so rewarding,” Grohmann said. “A female coach who understands exactly where they’re coming from, not just in the game of softball, is so important.”
Grohmann’s main goal, other than leading the team to victory, is to show them things that will be used for life. She wants to be the role model to the Lady Aztecs and teach them that it’s more than softball.
“Coaches are like teachers. These girls will look back years from now and remember the people who left a mark in their lives forever. I hope that aside from softball, I can help them become better women. By doing that, our biggest goal for them is to leave this place and program better than they found it,” Grohmann said. “I want them to know that no matter how old they get or where they are in life, I will always be someone they can count on for as long as they need.”
While the Lady Aztec’s are in the offseason, they’re working hard for when the next chapter starts. Their season will start off in great shape under the direction of Grohmann.
“I am so excited to be the leader of this already talented program. I couldn’t have asked for a better place to be. We have a great few years ahead of us and we’re just getting started. Come out and support these ladies. You won’t regret it,” Grohmann said.
