Harnish inks eight more players for next year

Western Nebraska Community College women’s basketball coach Dave Harnish saw some weaknesses after last year’s heartbreaking finish at the Region IX tournament. He has been hard at work during this off season to correct those weaknesses.

In turn, Harnish has added plenty of size and toughness with his incoming players for next year.

“The biggest thing I tried to do this year in recruiting is find tougher kids and kids that can compete, which is what happened in the championship game last year and the second semester,” he said. “Our defense slipped with playing with a passion and toughness. I think this group might not be as talented of a recruiting class, but they have a passion for the game and compete.”

The Cougar women have a nice nucleus of returners from last year’s 27-2 team in Alison Cheney, Chelsea Lyles, Dana Iverson, Carly Glisan and Emma Beddome. Harnish has nine new players signed for next year.

The newest recruits include 6-foot Michelle Lighthall of Colorado Springs, Colo., 6-2 Kat Harley from Calgary, Alberta, Canada, 5-4 Cheri Palmer of Aurora, Colo., 5-7 Maggie Murtagh of Berthoud, Colo., 5-11 Eli Cosmo-Gonzalez of Denver, Colo., 5-9 Shaquilah Davis of Colorado Springs, Colo., 6-0 Tawny Drexler of Lakewood, Colo., and 5-10 Jenna Colwell of Hermit Park, Australia.

Palmer, who is one of the top recruits for Harnish, earned 3A Player of the Year honors while playing for Bishop Machebeuf High, where she averaged 20 points, four assists and three steals a game. She also made 28 3-pointers on the season, and had a season high 30 points in a game against Burlington.

Palmer has averaged in double figures since her sophomore year, scoring 15 points a game as a junior and 11.8 points as a sophomore. She helped lead Machebeuf to the 3A state title this year by beating Basalt 55-46.

“Losing Kiki [Taylor], we definitely needed a point guard, and Cheri is definitely point guard material. She handles the ball and sees the floor really well,” Harnish said. “I think she can be one of our better points guards we have ever had here.”

Murtagh is the younger sister of former Cougar Bridget Murtagh and brings the same kind of basketball savvy to the Cougar program. Murtagh averaged 15 points her senior year, including making 75 3-pointers. Maggie earned 4A honorable mention all-state honors.

“In a way, the two sisters are similar. Maggie is a very tough kid. She plays the game with a lot of passion. She loves the game and plays hard. I think her best attribute is she is a very good shooter. She shoots the three very well. She competes and plays hard,” Harnish said. “This year we tried to find some kids that could do that, play hard, and will do that a little bit better. I thought we lost that last year. I thought we were a little bit softer than in other teams that we have had. We tried to recruit some kids that we think are a little bit tougher and Maggie will give us that toughness.”

Davis is another guard recruit for next year, who averaged 12.9 points, four steals, and made 24 3-pointers her senior year at Sierra High in Colorado Springs, where she was first-team all-conference.

Davis is a player that Harnish said is tenacious on defense.

“Shaquilah was a late signee because she was looking at four-year schools, and we were looking for guards with size,” he said. “She is a great defender, and being 5-9 for a guard position, she will give us great size as well as being a great athlete that can score.”

The other recruits will provide some finesse on the inside, and among the inside players is Drexler. The 5-foot-11 forward earned honorable mention 4A all-state honors. She averaged 14.2 points and 10 rebounds a game last year. She also scored in double figures in 18 of 24 games for Golden High School.

Harnish said it was a surprise to get a talented player like Drexler, who was being recruited by many four-year colleges.

“I think she has great potential and is someone that is a little bit tougher, who can battle and be aggressive. Tawny definitely will do that for us,” he said. “She will be able to play the four or five spot of us.”

Lighthall will be another strong inside player for the Cougars next season. Lighthall averaged 16 points and eight rebounds last year at Manitou Springs, where she played basketball and soccer, earning 3A honorable mention all-state and first team all-conference honors. She was also a goalkeeper on the Mustang soccer team this past spring.

“Michelle is along the prototype of players like Dana and Carly, where she is able to shoot the ball and put the ball on the floor,” he said. “She will fit into our offense well because it is an offense that kids can go inside and out. She is the type of kid that can do anything and to find someone of her size that can do both makes you better.”

Kat Harley, another inside recruit, will only have one year at WNCC after playing one year at the University of Alaska-Anchorage, but Harnish said Harley will bring size inside. In high school, Harley averaged 16 points, eight rebounds and two blocks for Bishop O’Byrne High, leading them to three straight Division I city championships.

“Kat is someone who we haven’t had here in a while. She is a big, strong girl with size that we have lacked,” he said. “With her having a year of experience at the four-year level and the year they had last year at Alaska, we are hoping she comes in here and carries that over. Unfortunately, she will only be here one year, but we are expecting great things from her.”

Cosme-Gonzalez will also provide some depth after earning 5A honorable mention all-state honors for George Washington in Denver, where she averaged 14.5 points and eight rebounds a game, while shooting 66 percent from the field.

“I like Elli because she is an athletic kid, but knows how to score,” Harnish said. “She is also a good rebounder, but she also can put the ball on the floor and shoot the ball. She gives us athleticism. She knows the game and is a very smart player.”

Colwell is the final recruit. She comes to Scottsbluff from Australia. Harnish said that the University of Wyoming gave Colwell’s name to him and he is expecting great things from her.

Colwell averaged 14 points and nine rebounds in Australia.

“She is suppose to be a great rebounder and defensive player, who plays the game hard,” he said. “She is along the type of kid we were looking for this year. I found out the Australian kids play with a lot of passion, play hard, and are very smart. They know the game very well.”

These eight newcomers will join Scottsbluff’s SeLina Ysac, who signed with WNCC back in May. Ysac was a first team Star-Herald all-region selection, while averaging around 15 points a game for the Bearcats.

The Cougar women are set to open the season the first weekend in November at a tournament in Williston, N.D.