BOWLING GREEN, Ky. -- Western Kentucky women's basketball coach Steve Small, the second winningest coach in the program's history, retired Monday.
Mary Taylor Cowles, the associate head coach and a former Western
Kentucky basketball player, was made interim coach while the
university conducts a nationwide search for a replacement.
Small, 52, said the time has come to look for other challenges.
"I joined the Lady Topper program when it was just a seed," Small said. "In my time at Western, that seed developed into a wonderful tree, and I feel fortunate to have been able to help that tree take root."
The team was 19-14 last season for its 19th consecutive winning
record.
During Small's four-year tenure as head coach, the team had an
88-40 record, three consecutive 20-win seasons and twice made it to
the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Before being hired as
coach, Small had been at Western Kentucky for 13 years, the last
five as associate head coach under Paul Sanderford.
Small replaced Sanderford in July, 1997, when Sanderford left for Nebraska. Sanderford was 365-120 during his 15 years at Western Kentucky.
Cowles played at Western Kentucky from 1988-91.
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