After a successful season last year, head women’s basketball coach, Kellie Kennedy added two new additions to her team, assistant coaches Samantha Thomas and Kaila Anderson. 

Both are eager for the upcoming season, they said. 

“I’m just excited to be back into this team atmosphere,” Thomas said, having missed being on the court. Coach Anderson said she is confident for another successful season, expressing excitement in seeing “a good program first hand.”

Samantha Thomas, new women’s basketball assistant coach and recruiting coordinator, has kept a promising career on the court. Thomas graduated at Northwestern State University in Natchitoches, Louisiana and soon started a career in basketball training. She now has her own gym in Baton Rouge, where she will continue to work as she begins her career at Loyola. 

Coach Kennedy also welcomed Kaila Anderson to the court as an assistant coach. Anderson is a recent graduate of Tulane University, who pursued a degree in marketing. During her time there, she played for the school’s basketball team, which led to her recruitment for the job. 

Both of the new coaches are ecstatic for the upcoming season and seeing what it has to offer, both for themselves and the students, they said. . 

But the Coaches aren’t the only one’s excited for this change. Senior Taylor Thomas is point guard for the team and described this change as positive. She feels as though the coaches will be “a great asset to the team.” She also believes these coaches will be able to communicate and relate to her and her teammates well.