Harper Taylor's first game as head coach of the Kansas Wesleyan women's basketball team was a mixed bag.
Dakota State, the fourth-ranked team in the NAIA, defeated the Coyotes 81-61 in the Coyote Classic on Friday night inside Mabee Arena but Taylor saw plenty to like.
KWU trailed 35-30 at halftime and 56-53 after three quarters before DSU's size, depth and full court pressure took a toll.
Taylor's starting lineup Friday featured no returning starters from last season compared to the Trojans who returned four starters - one being Tabor Teel the North Star Conference Player of the Year and a second team All-American - from a team that finished 25-5 record and won a game in the NAIA National Championship.
"I'm really proud of how the first three quarters went, I wish we could have ended the game at the third quarter," said Taylor who came to KWU after spending the last two seasons as an assistant at Metro State-Denver. "I just know that we've got a young group, and we've got to be able to play and put together four quarters."
Wesleyan fell behind 20-7 in the first quarter but closed on a 12-2 run and trailed 22-19 entering the second period. The game remained close until halftime.
The Coyotes never led but pulled even twice in the third quarter at 46-46 and 48-48. They trailed 58-55 with 8:44 left in the game after an Izzy McCool basket but Dakota State scored the next 17 points and led 75-55 with 2:04 remaining.
"I am pleased, but I'm not complacent by any means," Taylor said. "I know that if we're going to be a top contender in the (Kansas Conference) we have to be able to take care of the ball. We have a limited number of people that can really bring it up court right now and we've got to be able to overcome that challenge. It was great to see the girls be able to compete, but I still think that we've got a long way to go."
McCool, a transfer from Dordt, scored a team-best 14 points on 6 of 11 shooting and had six rebounds. Point guard Odessa Ozuna, KWU's top reserve a year ago, had 11 points, seven assists and five rebounds while playing 36 minutes. Freshman center Raegann McDonald was impressive in her college debut with eight points and 10 rebounds.
Dakota State (2-0) scored 27 points off KWU's 23 turnovers and used its considerable size advantage to outscore the Coyotes 64-28 in the paint.
"We had 12 turnovers at half, and I said if we could keep the turnovers under 12 in the second half we'd have a chance," Taylor said. "I know that we're learning an entirely new press break with this group, and they were able to hold it together for three quarters. When they got tired is when there were breakdowns."
Taylor had no qualms with her team's energy and intensity.
"They played really hard," she said. "There were a couple moments where I could just see that dogfight in them going after 50-50 balls. Like I said if we want to be a top contender in the KCAC we're going to have to have that all year long."
Teel finished with 27 points and eight rebounds and Cierra Watkins had 15 points and 10 rebounds for DSU.