Four straight Region IX championships -- the most in Region IX -- and winning six titles in  eight years is something that every college program would love to have. Well, that is one thing that WNCC women’s basketball coach Dave Harnish has WNCC is fortunate to have a coach of his caliber at the institution.

Harnish just finished his 24th year as head coach, coming to WNCC in 1988. Through the years, Harnish has enjoyed some impressive numbers including nine Region IX championships, 17 years in the Region IX championship game, a national runner-up finish in 2003, and two Final Four appearances.

Harnish has a career head coaching record of 647-141, all of which have come as coach of WNCC.

With those kind of credentials and it is an impressive feat to keep turning out winning teams one after each other. One number that really stands out is that Harnish's teams have not won less than 20 games a year. Another fact to Harnish's coaching intellect is that his teams have not lost more than nine games in a season, ever. It is a statistic that not too many, if any, women's coach can say they have accomplished. And, remember, he has only been the head coach at just one college -- WNCC.

In his 24 years of coaching at WNCC, Harnish has averaged an amazing 26 wins a season and just six defeats. Harnish has been named District coach of the year nine times and Region IX coach of the year six times. The Cougars are in their 36th year in women’s basketball and Harnish is aiming for his 700th career win.

Besides all the success of the team, Harnish's players have gone on to play four-year basketball at either the NCAA Division 1 or 2, or NAIA levels. Harnish has coached nearly 40  Region IX All-Region players and 14 NJCAA all-Americans from first team to honorable mention. Harnish has seen three players go on to play professional overseas in Melantha Herron, Tatian Coneicao, and Yuki Marimoto.

Harnish started his playing days in the late 1970s when he was on the Cougars’ fi rst men’s basketball Region IX team (coached by men’s coach Ron Brillhart). From there he went on to start at Adams State College. After college, he came back briefly as an assistant coach before following to Brillhart to the University of Northern Colorado. Then, in 1988, Harnish took over the reigns of the women’s basketball program and helped bring the team from average seasons and performances at the regional tournament to national recognition.

Outside of basketball, Harnish is a single father raising his daughter, Nicol, and son, Josh. Harnish is currently a physical education instructor at WNCC. He also enjoys playing golf.

Ipek Turkyilmaz just finished her second year as an assistant coach under Dave Harnish, and the former all-star basketball player from Barton Community College and University of Arizona brings plenty of basketball saavy to the program.

Turkyilmaz played two seasons at Barton County CC where she averaged 12.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 2.1 steals in 68 games, making 61 starts. She shot 40.4 percent (171-423) from three-point range, helping the Cougars to a 61-7 overall record (.897) during her two-year career. During her sophomore season, she led Barton to its first Region IV Championship in eight seasons, a 34-4 record and a fourth-place finish at the NJCAA Tournament, the top finish in school history. At Barton, she broke the season and single game 3-point records. She nailed eight 3-pointers.

At Arizona, she played one season before helping the team as an student assistant coach. The one thing that stands out about Turkyilmaz is her shooting, especially from the 3-point arc where she is nearly perfect. Tukyilmaz was born July 2, 1986 and is the daughter of Suheyla and Serafettin. She has a older sister, Nur, and a younger brother, Onur.