Kansas Wesleyan's Harper Taylor is more confident and at ease entering her second season as the Coyotes' coach.
Taylor led KWU to a 14-15 record, 11-11 in the Kansas Conference last season, but the return of three key starters and the arrival of a handful of promising newcomers has her looking forward to 2026-27.
The Coyotes won their last three games of the regular season and earned the eighth seed in the KCAC postseason tournament. Taylor is buoyed by the fact that her team was close in numerous games; KWU's last seven regular season losses were by an average of just 4.8 points.
"It does feel like we had close game after close game, single digit losses, just kind of battling constantly," she said Thursday during the KCAC Women's Basketball Media Day. "But we couldn't really ask for anything better. Having those close games and being able to gain that kind of experience is something you can't teach.
"I know that we have a ton of potential this season with some of the talent that we have. I don't want us to be satisfied with just being in eighth place in conference, I know we can be better than that."
Seniors Odessa Ozuna and Izzy McCool and sophomore Anna Jueneman return after successful outings a year ago.
"I think the best thing is that all three of them bring something completely different whether it is big numbers that they're putting up or behind the scenes like their personalities and who they are as people," Taylor said. "They're very different but at the end of the day are all super competitive."
A group of transfers are expected to have an immediate impact led by 6-foot-1 forward Katrina Schutz from Minnesota West Community and Technical College.
"She's brought a lot of great leadership in the preseason; she's very smart, her basketball IQ is very high, and she's a great shooter," Taylor said.
Improving the defense has been a focal point in the preseason.
"I think it's great we can score but, in my book if we want to be better and not just clinch eighth and go .500, we've got to be really consistent and almost perfect on the defensive end," Taylor said.
The Coyotes open the season against MidAmerica Nazarene Nov. 3 in Olathe. The KCAC coaches' preseason poll will be announced next week.
"Last year I found myself as a head coach often stressed and that's reality because I care. But I think I can turn that stress into a little bit more passion and action with our team, so I'm just looking forward to enjoying it," Taylor said.