Racing Louisville FC's Taylor Flint is thriving as an agent of change

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) - The list of reasons for why you can't miss Taylor Flint could stretch from head to toe.

Towering over many peers, Racing Louisville FC's 6-foot-1-inch defensive midfielder is one of the tallest players in the National Women's Soccer League. Her frame stretches long enough to frustrate opponents trying to flurry past a physically imposing presence. 

She calls her build unique. And it was something within it that changed the former San Diego standout's career.

"I had a lot of rough patches going on," Flint said. "And I am a person that loves change. I felt like the signs were telling me that it was just time to make a change."

Formerly Taylor Kornieck, Flint sat on a practice field at the Lynn Family Sports and Vision Training Center and revealed something she hasn't said publicly, a past injury that pushes far past any pitch to start a string of various ones affecting her on it.

"I ended up having a cyst on my ovary that popped," Flint said. "And I had to get immediate surgery because my ovary was affected too."

The National Library of Medicine states these extreme cases are considered gynecological emergencies. If not treated properly or removed, they can "cause life-threatening hemorrhage."

The 25-year-old has been married to Bailey Flint, an entrepreneur and former Canadian Football League punter, for a year. They dream of having a big family. 

"You have to ask each other these really scary questions about your future," Flint said. "Our whole world turned upside down for a second.

"That was really scary because my biggest fear is not being able to have children. I just didn't really know what to do."

Once recovered from surgery, she thought she could again focus on finding her form on the field. That's when a second cyst appeared, causing Flint to not even hesitate.

"I'm a person before I'm an athlete," Flint said. "So, I pulled myself out."

Thankfully, she now is fully healed and has two healthy ovaries. Flint and her husband just celebrated an one-year marriage anniversary. 

But when it comes to soccer, keep something else in mind: This is someone who was on the rise.

She started 2023 appearing in every United States Women's National Soccer Team friendly, even scoring a goal. Before her second season in San Diego, the Las Vegas native had averaged about 1,112 minutes per season over three campaigns between Germany's Bundesliga and the NWSL. There were 38 starts in that period.

"I actually am fortunate enough to never have any serious injuries in the past," Flint said. "And that was the scariest injury I could ever think of.

"So, I don't know. A lot of it took a huge toll on me. And I was just like, 'I need a break.'"

Following an 1-0 Challenge Cup loss to Seattle on July 28, 2023, Flint wouldn't play in another match until Sept. 3. From then on, she averaged just 18 minutes over the next six matches.

"You're trying to get your starting spot and then you're juggling this on the side," Flint said. "It just took a lot out of me."

Throw in a broken nose and concussion to only offer more obstacles. Still, the Wave finished the regular season on top of the NWSL standings, later losing in the league's semifinal.

The then attacking midfielder, who started 10 games across all competitions from March 28 to July 25, only started one more time following her return from that break: the 1-0 loss to Seattle to end San Diego's season.

"That was one of my favorite places I've ever played," Flint said of San Diego. "But I like to follow my heart and the path that's leading me to a different way."

An agent of change started punching up her own numbers to figure out what was next. A mindset coach introduced her to numerology, which can assign deeper meaning and significance to the numbers that make up someone's birth date.

"I'm born on Nov. 22, 1998, so it's 11 and 22," Flint explained. "It adds up to 33. So, it goes 1-1, 2-2 and 3-3. And my mindset coach goes, 'I've never seen that, like, ever.'"

But why was that of any significance to her? Because a different number can emphasize different characteristics, traits, emotions or feelings. 

"So, you have a double three, which means I'm very empathic," Flint said. "I feel so hard of an emotion when someone else is going through something. And he just takes that, and puts it into me on the field.

"If I'm valued, I play at my best. So, I need to be around people that can have compassion for me. And if I make a mistake, they know that I'll fix it and it helps me play better."

Louisville came calling. Flint has been friends with fellow midfielder Savannah DeMelo, so she contacted her to vet out Racing as a possible destination, one she hadn't thought much of. 

"You don't have the beaches of California, mountains of Utah or skyscrapers of New York," Flint said. "But the intimacy of the people, how everybody just kind of knows each other and is looking out for each other, I think that's a really cool thing about Louisville. I didn't expect that when I came here."

Racing valued Flint enough to send $150,000 in allocation money to San Diego and trade for a talented midfielder who was about to be with her third NWSL club in four years. And Louisville's midfield was already stocked with talent.

"Their conversations with me were that they were just so happy that I'm here," Flint said. "And it made me feel kind of relaxed because I love when people value me. I love that I can bring something that means a lot to them like that. That's where I thrive and they made me feel so comfortable."

Even with a position change. In San Diego, Flint was more of an attacking midfielder. That position typically requires a player to pressure defenses with the threat to shoot, create off one-on-one dribbling ability or deploy precise passing in scoring areas to facilitate chances.

Racing's staff switched her to being more of a defensive midfielder, meaning she now had more dirty work to do in being a physical presence and first line of defense. You have to be strong in the air and tackle well while still somehow helping connect the players at the front of a formation to the ones in the back.

"It just allowed me to kind of let the stress roll off my shoulders on the first day and kind of be me," Flint said. "Because that's what they expected of me. They just wanted me to play like how I am, and it gave me a lot of confidence."

The confidence to catapult Flint into defensive dominance. She now enjoys blocking shots more than firing them. The Colorado alumna is one of two NWSL players to block at least 18 shots and 18 passes this season.

Her size has become even more of problem for opponents because it is punishing. A combined 122 tackles and interceptions leads the NWSL and is 34 more than the player in second place. 

There are four individuals in the entire league who have attempted at least 40 tackles. Flint has the second-highest successful tackle percentage: 61%.

"I like getting really physical," Flint said. "I win a lot of headers, so I always had that bite in me, and this has allowed it to be free a little bit."

But that doesn't mean she avoids using her offensive abilities. She will still push up to central midfield, offer herself as a dangerous aerial threat for headers and prefers trying riskier long passes, attempting 65 this season for a success rate of 45%.

"I still get higher when I need to," Flint said. "Playing with players like Sav (DeMelo) and Ary (Borges) in particular, they're very cheeky players. And I consider myself a little bit of a cheeky player. Like, I find that risky ball a lot. So, it's a different type of six (the positional number for a defensive midfielder)."

Louisville just traded another type in its now former captain: Jaelin Howell. The club sent the former No. 2 overall pick and ball-winning bulldog to Seattle in an effort to solve a scoring problem. Bethany Balcer, a striker tied for the third-most goals in the NWSL since 2019, came in exchange in hopes of being that answer.

But Flint and Howell are close friends from spending time together in U.S. Youth National Team camps. They were both initially shocked by the news.

"I love playing with Jae," Flint said. "We always kind of had a connection and we're very similar players. And I think it's the beauty behind it. I just knew exactly where she was going to be and we played so well together.

"I was upset a little bit. But you know, it's professional sports. She's going to go off and absolutely kill it in Seattle. And I'm just so excited to see her change.

"And this could be good. I look at it like my change: When I came here, it's like I needed it. I needed it to fuel me to be better. That's a good way for her to look at it as well."

Now an anchor for a team who is two points out of a playoff spot with 10 matches left to earn a first-ever playoff berth, Flint has her sights set on what she fell a victory short of with San Diego: an NWSL championship.

"That's always been on my bucket list," Flint said. "And I just want to surround myself with people who feel that way too. I think this team is a good representation of that. I think Bev has been on our asses. And I think that's what we need.

"We need that push. Right now, we need to be in the playoffs. And I think we have a good opportunity to do that. Then, I think the next step is that championship."

Most would feel that pressure building, and not just to be an impact player in such a push. It could also come from trying to prove a club could deal its captain of a defensive midfielder and still win because it, at the time, unknowingly acquired her replacement at that position.

An older version of Flint may have felt that way, as she admits she has to calm her mind down from overthinking. 

"That's one of my challenge traits," Flint said. "I don't need my mind racing."

Pregame music playlists feature artists like Sam Smith instead of the stereotypical slapping sounds of hype music. Meditation and peace are paramount. All of it adds up to a towering presence going on her own personal journey when a pop threatened potential parenthood.

But it somehow gave birth to a new life in Louisville. 

"If I'm too consistent somewhere, I tend to fall into these habits of just being there and I'm not present, like I'm just going through the motions," Flint said. "And that's the thing that I need to work on personally. I think I'm doing that.

"Having such a drastic change to come here, it allowed me to kind of reset. And I think I genuinely needed that. Five years in the league, I needed a spark to be like, 'Alright, it's go time.'

"This change has helped me do that because it's a change of a team. It's a change of a name. It's a change of a number. And it's a change of a position. I feel like all of these things are coming together and just allowing me to be free."

More Racing Louisville FC Coverage:

• Racing deals Reilyn Turner for Janine Beckie, continuing roster makeover
• GREEVER | Racing Louisville FC pays a captain's price in an attempt to make a needed playoff push
• Racing Louisville FC trades captain Jaelin Howell to Seattle for veteran scorer Bethany Balcer
• Racing Louisville trades defender Carson Pickett to the Orlando Pride

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