Matt Pfeifer, head Garden City High School girls’ basketball coach, has resigned, according to a news release.
The resignation comes after completing Pfeifer’s sixth season at the program’s helm when the Buffs lost to Topeka-Washburn Rural, 61-27, in the Class 6A sub-state semifinals on Tuesday in Topeka.
Tuesday’s season-ending loss left the Buffs with a 3-18 record, the fewest wins in a season in Pfeifer’s six campaigns. His best season had been in the 2020-21 year when the Lady Buffs were 11-6. However, that group graduated seven seniors, and Pfeifer had just two returning starters with varsity experience this season.
According to Drew Thon, GCHS athletics/activities director, Pfeifer informed the team of his decision following Tuesday night’s game in Topeka.
Thon said Pfeifer has completed his work toward an administration certificate and plans to pursue that avenue of education leadership.
“We’re very grateful for the years of energy and effort that Matt put into the program,” Thon said. “He invested a lot of time into developing the relationships with our student-athletes, and we appreciate what he did in that area.”
Pfeifer’s six seasons produced a won-loss record of 48-76, a .387 percentage. In his first two seasons, the Lady Buffs went 6-16 and 6-15 before enjoying his first winning season of 12-10 in the 2018-19 campaign. In the 2019-20 season, the Lady Buffs were 10-11 before the breakout season of 2020-21.
This year’s Lady Buffs had just two seniors on the roster – Kristin Roth and Delaney Tesch. The remainder of the starters were primarily comprised of juniors.
Thon indicated that a search process for a new head coach would get underway soon.