Park University Women's Basketball

Cooper has amassed a record of 80-64 and a winning percentage of .556, which is the highest of any coach in the 34-year history of the women's basketball program. The team has made it to the AMC quarterfinals all five years with Cooper at the helm, and to the semifinals in 2010-2011 and 2011-2012. Under Cooper, 28 players have been named Academic All-Conference, four First Team All-Conference and three Honorable Mention All-Conference players. In 2014 Channell Mackey was named an All-American Honorable Mention. There have also been three Daktronics Scholar Athletes under Cooper, Amanda Laurenceau (2014) and Halima Ramsey (2011, 2012).  Park saw its season-high four-game win streak halted in the AMC Tournament to eventual champion Columbia for the third-consecutive year, ending the 2012-13 season at the hands of the Cougars. Brianna Beridon finished the year as the AMC's scoring champion and a First-Team All-Conference honoree averaging nearly 18 points per game for Coach Cooper. The 2011-12 campaign opened with one of the program's best starts posting a 10-1 record at the holiday break before advancing to the semifinals of the AMC Tournament. Two members of Coopers first recruiting class at Park earned All-Conference honors for the second straight year; Vivian Holcomb (First-Team) and Beridon (Honorable Mention). In his first season as head coach, 2010-11, Cooper led the Pirates to the third-most wins in a single season in program history posting an 18-11 overall record and 9-7 AMC mark. Park increased its win total by 13 during Cooper's first season after going 5-25 in 2009-10, marking the second greatest turnaround in NAIA Division I Women's basketball, one win shy from California Baptist's 14 wins.  Cooper had two players earn postseason honors in his first season as Holcomb was the only freshman named to the 2010-11 AMC First-Team All-Conference squad and Beridon was named AMC Honorable Mention All-Conference.  Prior to joining Park, Cooper spent three years as the assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at NCAA Division I Mercer University in Macon, Ga., from 2007-2010, and was instrumental in assisting head coach, Janell Jones, with reinvigorating the Bears' program.  He was part of a staff that inherited a 5-25 team and endured a 4-26 record its first season at Mercer. In the 2008-09 season, the Bears went 17-14 and proved to be the greatest turnaround in the country that year, according to CollegeRPI.com, by making a 153 point swing (315 to 162) in the RPI. The team was picked to finish eighth in the Atlantic Sun Conference by both media and coaches pre-season polls, but proved the experts wrong with a fourth-place showing before advancing to the A-Sun semifinals. Along with his duties as assistant coach at Mercer, Cooper excelled as the recruiting coordinator for the Bears. In three seasons, student-athletes recruited by Cooper earned a First-Team All A-Sun award, three Second-Team All-Conference honors, an A-Sun Defensive Player of the Year, eight A-Sun Player of the Week awards, and 18 Academic All-Conference selections. As a part of Mercer's 2010-11 recruiting class, Cooper brought in three players that were ranked in the top 50 by ESPN in the southeast region.  Cooper previously spent three seasons as an assistant with Seminole State College, helping the team reach the Bi-State Conference Tournament each year during his tenure. Seminole State also finished third at the 2007 NJCAA Region II Tournament. The Belles' compiled a 51-40 (.560) record during his three-year stint as assistant coach. Cooper played collegiately at the University of Montevallo in Montevallo, Ala. After redshirting his freshman year, he helped the Falcons win a Gulf South Conference Tournament title during his senior season when he served as team captain. Montevallo also reached the NCAA Division II South Regional finals as the Falcons finished with a 23-10 record in 2004. Cooper received the University of Montevallo Sportsmanship Award in 2004.  A native of Fayetteville, Ga., Cooper started at Fayette County High School before his collegiate playing career at Montevallo. At Fayette County, he served as team captain his junior and senior seasons while earning four varsity letters. Cooper graduated from Montevallo in 2004 with a bachelor's degree in kinesiology. Cooper, his wife Erin, and their twin daughters reside in Kansas City, Mo. Kenneth Cooper begins his sixth season as head coach of the Park University women's basketball team after reaching the quarterfinals of the American Midwest Conference Tournament in 2014-15 for the third straight year.  In his first five seasons with the Pirates, Cooper has amassed a record of 80-64 and a winning percentage of .556, which is the highest of any coach in the 34-year history of the women's basketball program. The team has made it to the AMC quarterfinals all five years with Cooper at the helm, and to the semifinals in 2010-2011 and 2011-2012. Under Cooper, 28 players have been named Academic All-Conference, four First Team All-Conference and three Honorable Mention All-Conference players. In 2014 Channell Mackey was named an All-American Honorable Mention. There have also been three Daktronics Scholar Athletes under Cooper, Amanda Laurenceau (2014) and Halima Ramsey (2011, 2012).  Park saw its season-high four-game win streak halted in the AMC Tournament to eventual champion Columbia for the third-consecutive year, ending the 2012-13 season at the hands of the Cougars. Brianna Beridon finished the year as the AMC's scoring champion and a First-Team All-Conference honoree averaging nearly 18 points per game for Coach Cooper. The 2011-12 campaign opened with one of the program's best starts posting a 10-1 record at the holiday break before advancing to the semifinals of the AMC Tournament. Two members of Coopers first recruiting class at Park earned All-Conference honors for the second straight year; Vivian Holcomb (First-Team) and Beridon (Honorable Mention). In his first season as head coach, 2010-11, Cooper led the Pirates to the third-most wins in a single season in program history posting an 18-11 overall record and 9-7 AMC mark. Park increased its win total by 13 during Cooper's first season after going 5-25 in 2009-10, marking the second greatest turnaround in NAIA Division I Women's basketball, one win shy from California Baptist's 14 wins.  Cooper had two players earn postseason honors in his first season as Holcomb was the only freshman named to the 2010-11 AMC First-Team All-Conference squad and Beridon was named AMC Honorable Mention All-Conference.  Prior to joining Park, Cooper spent three years as the assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at NCAA Division I Mercer University in Macon, Ga., from 2007-2010, and was instrumental in assisting head coach, Janell Jones, with reinvigorating the Bears' program.  He was part of a staff that inherited a 5-25 team and endured a 4-26 record its first season at Mercer. In the 2008-09 season, the Bears went 17-14 and proved to be the greatest turnaround in the country that year, according to CollegeRPI.com, by making a 153 point swing (315 to 162) in the RPI. The team was picked to finish eighth in the Atlantic Sun Conference by both media and coaches pre-season polls, but proved the experts wrong with a fourth-place showing before advancing to the A-Sun semifinals. Along with his duties as assistant coach at Mercer, Cooper excelled as the recruiting coordinator for the Bears. In three seasons, student-athletes recruited by Cooper earned a First-Team All A-Sun award, three Second-Team All-Conference honors, an A-Sun Defensive Player of the Year, eight A-Sun Player of the Week awards, and 18 Academic All-Conference selections. As a part of Mercer's 2010-11 recruiting class, Cooper brought in three players that were ranked in the top 50 by ESPN in the southeast region.  Cooper previously spent three seasons as an assistant with Seminole State College, helping the team reach the Bi-State Conference Tournament each year during his tenure. Seminole State also finished third at the 2007 NJCAA Region II Tournament. The Belles' compiled a 51-40 (.560) record during his three-year stint as assistant coach. Cooper played collegiately at the University of Montevallo in Montevallo, Ala. After redshirting his freshman year, he helped the Falcons win a Gulf South Conference Tournament title during his senior season when he served as team captain. Montevallo also reached the NCAA Division II South Regional finals as the Falcons finished with a 23-10 record in 2004. Cooper received the University of Montevallo Sportsmanship Award in 2004.  A native of Fayetteville, Ga., Cooper started at Fayette County High School before his collegiate playing career at Montevallo. At Fayette County, he served as team captain his junior and senior seasons while earning four varsity letters. Cooper graduated from Montevallo in 2004 with a bachelor's degree in kinesiology. Cooper, his wife Erin, and their twin daughters reside in Kansas City, Mo. Amanda Laurenceau begins her first season as an assistant coach for the Pirates after three seasons playing in a Park University uniform, all under head coach Kenneth Cooper. Her final season, earned her second Daktronics-NAIA Division I Women's Basketball Scholar-Athlete award, playing 15 games with two starts and more than 200 minutes...Added 45 points and 45 rebounds, with 12 steals and 16 assists...Continued her solid work at the foul line, shooting 64.3 percent. Played in 22 games and made 14 starts in her second season with the program, collecting 54 points in 388 minutes while grabbing 56 rebounds...Also had 13 steals and shot 71.4 percent at the free-throw line. : Played in 28 games for the Pirates earning the start in eight playing 13 minutes a game ... Scored a season-high five points at Williams Baptist (Jan. 12) ... Grabbed a season-high seven rebounds at home against Williams Baptist (Feb. 9) ... Led the team with a career-best five assists in victory over Benedictine-Springfield (Jan. 26). : Played her sophomore season at Neosho County Community College in Chanute, Kan., for head coach Kelley Newton ... Made 31 appearances for the Lady Panthers averaging 2.9 points and 2.5 rebounds per game ... Scored a season-high 13 ponts against Fort Scott (2/22) ... Named to KJCCC All-Academic team and was a conference Female Athlete of the Week honoree. : Born in Port Chester, N.Y. and is the daughter of Nancy Roman and Victor Laurenceau ... Has one younger brother, Mario Szlapka Jr. (20) ... Spends her free time reading and watching movies ... Graduated from Lincoln Northeast High School in Lincoln, Neb., in 2007 ... Played for the Rockets' head coach Rich Olson ... Majoring in Psychology at Park.