Well-behaved women rarely make history
Height: 5-foot-5
Weight: 160 pounds
Hometown: New Albany, Indiana
Tomboys usually grow out of the phase as they get older, trading their tree houses and skinned up knees for doll houses and party dresses.
Not Taryn Shay. Her love of rough-and-tumble activities only grew as she got older, which naturally led her to the business of professional wrestling, where a mean and nasty attitude is not a drawback, but an asset. And as her opponents can attest, Shay is definitely mean and nasty.
"I was really inspired by (WWE star) Lita," Shay says. "She was out there kicking butt for all us tomboys."
These days it is Shay who is kicking butt. The powerfully built brunette has fought and feuded with virtually every woman in the Ohio Valley Wrestling stable, a group that includes standouts such as Lady Jojo, C.J. Lane and Jessica Cheyenne. The ladies who brawl in OVW are not divas, but some of the roughest, toughest women to enter the business.
"There are some tough girls around," Shay says with a smirk, "But none of them are tougher than me. I like a good fight. Actually, I love a good fight, the harder and nastier the better. It really brings out my competitive streak. To take these other girls down, to see the tears in their eyes, to hear them moaning in pain and whimpering for me to stop hurting them, it's music to my ears."
Trained by Nick Dinsmore and Rip Rogers, Shay made her debut two years ago in a wild, six-girl tag match that was part of a new talent showcase at OVW. Fans didn't expect much from the six ladies, all of them relatively new to the business, but found themselves watching a whirlwind of action and brutality. And right in the center of the action was Shay, her eyes wide with anger and her fist flying like pistons as she pounded away at her opponents.
"I only know one way to fight and that's to give 100%," she adds.
Shay's arrival in Magnificent Ladies Wrestling is bad news for the scores of other top-notch competitors. She's not only intent on winning the coveted championship belt, but wants to face off with all the other wrestlers to demonstrate her mastery.
"I always strive for what I want and I never settle for less than I deserve," Shay declares. "What I want is to be the best in the Magnificent Ladies Wrestling and what I deserve is the championship belt. I feel sorry for anyone who tries to get in my way."
Credit: Jeff Borden
