“They’re very special kids”: Lady Bears coach Dani Wright reflects on seniors, turbulent season

WARNER ROBINS — The 2025-26 season has not been one Houston County and head coach Dani Wright will want to remember when it’s all said and done.

Friday’s 82-26 loss to Coffee was the Lady Bears’ 22nd loss on a winless season, and their 33rd straight going back to last season.

It’d be easy for any member of the program, coach or players, to hold some negative feelings. But not Wright’s two seniors.

Alaina Coley and Sameena Khan were HoCo’s only two seniors celebrated during senior night. Having two seniors not only means you’re an extremely young team, it means there’s only so many places you can look for leadership.

Coley and Khan had a lot asked of them going all the way back to a dinner before the season even started. It was a talk about more than Xs and Os.

“We had a senior dinner in the very beginning and we talked about senior leadership and what it means, what you need to bring to the table, and that it’s not easy,” Wright said. “Leadership is hard. Sometimes you have to call people out and you have to get people rallied…I challenged them, what are you gonna leave behind?”

Some players lead by example. HoCo’s own soft-spoken Malik Gillespie will show you that. Northside’s Taylor Johnson takes a vocal approach, routinely barking orders on defense.

“Coley, she did her devotions. Sameena was doing the team bonding and making sure that everyone was together and fighting together,” She continued. “They left something special behind, and I hope those girls saw that and we talked about that even in the team room. It’s been a hard year and we’ve had ups and down, but everyone knows from these seniors that we’re gonna stay together and we’re gonna fight through it together.”

Coley has had to find ways to contribute off of the floor, too. Usually what sports fans call an “Ironman,” she rarely misses time to injury, but that changed this year.

“She’s been in and out [of the lineup]. We always laugh, in the beginning I always called her Superwoman. I was like, ‘She’s indestructible,’” Wright said. “You can’t hurt this child. She bounces back, she gives it her all every time. She’ll run through a brick wall for anybody. Even when she’s struggling and she’ll just look, ‘I’m trying coach, I’m trying.’ She is our Superwoman and I’m just so proud of her in everything.”

That left Khan as the only influence on the court, which can be a lot of pressure. But Wright spoke highly of her ability to handle it.

“She takes stuff on the chin and she’ll go hard for you, and knowing when it’s her time she really tries to get the troops together,” Wright said. “She’s very good at her love for the team, and the team followers her. She’s done a great job with the bond, the connection and rally. So I’m very proud of her in that aspect.”

Wright has only witnessed a relatively small portion of their lives, but she still became emotional when talking about their departure coming soon.

“They’ve grown so much, and I wish I coached them for four years,” Wright said. “We’ve talked [about it] all the time, we want to be better at life, and it’s not just basketball. It’s being a great daughter…teammate…student…sister, you name it. These girls have shined in those aspects.”

“Sometimes we only see the wins and losses on the basketball floor, but in life they’re winning. They’re very special kids and I love them dearly.”