CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – Head coach
Toyelle Wilson finalized the coaching staff of the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi women's basketball team on Friday afternoon, putting together the group set to lead the Islanders in the 2025-26 season.
The new additions to the staff are
Nathaniel Bell,
Makala Roper,
Austin Gunnell and
Payton Courier, who all join the team as assistant coaches. Gunnell will also serve as the video coordinator, and Courier will work as the director of basketball operations. The four are joined by associate head coach
Tron Griffin, who was brought on
as Wilson's top assistant back in April.
"I'm really excited about the staff that I've hired," Wilson said. "The most important thing when coaching is who you surround yourself with and if they are people that are aligned in your vision. They are not only that, but they are also hungry, hardworking, and committed to the development of our student-athletes on and off the floor."
Bell comes to the Island with seven years of coaching experience at the collegiate level, most recently as an assistant coach at Keiser University, where he helped the Seahawks record their best winning percentage in 15 years during his lone season with the team. He also served in the same role at both Arkansas-Pine Bluff for four years and Connors State College for two, helping the former improve its record every season of his tenure. Bell's time in college athletics started at Texas Southern in 2018, where he worked as a team manager and a student assistant for the women's basketball team while attending the university. He graduated with a degree in Sports Management in 2018 and later earned his master's in Secondary Education/Physical Education from UAPB in 2022.
"Nate is a San Antonio native, and everyone that I spoke with said he is a gym rat and loves to develop kids," Wilson said. "He is hardworking and communicates well. He is always willing to do whatever it takes to be great. I'm thankful he is here with us."
Roper joins the Islanders after five years with Seattle University, where she started as a graduate assistant ahead of the 2020-21 season before later being elevated to director of basketball operations in 2022 and then to an assistant coach in 2023. The Seattle native arrived with the Redhawks after a successful playing career of her own, spending four seasons at UC Santa Barbara. She played in 115 total games for the Gauchos, averaging 7.2 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game while earning an All-Big West Honorable Mention nod in 2015-16. Roper would go on to play one season professionally after college, featuring for Baerum Basket Bekkestua in Norway. Roper graduated from Seattle U with her bachelor's degree in African American/Black Studies from UCSB in 2018 and would later earn her master's in Sports Business Leadership from Seattle U in 2022.
"Makala bring some West Coast flavor to the South," Wilson said. "Coming from Seattle, she can help tap into a different area of recruiting, but she is also a rising star in this profession and wants to grow and learn. She is always willing to get any task done, and she's very motivated and can relate to the ladies on the team well. I'm excited about her growth and the ideas she will bring to our program."
Gunnell brings a wealth of NCAA Tournament experience to the Islanders, having most recently served as a graduate assistant for the women's basketball team at Baylor for each of the last two seasons. During his tenure with the team, the Bears advanced to the Sweet 16 in 2023-24 before following that up with a Round of 32 berth this past year. Prior to his time in Waco, Gunnell worked as a student manager for the University of Michigan, with the Wolverines making their first-ever Elite 8 appearance in his first year and a Round of 32 showing in his second. He graduated from Baylor with his bachelor's degree in Sports Management in 2023 and would later earn his master's degree in the same major two years later.
"Austin came from a great Power 4 program with an amazing coach in Nicki Collen at Baylor," Wilson said. "He learned from the best, and I'm so excited he is coming to be a part of our program and bringing that to us. He knows the game, has a high basketball IQ, works hard, has bright ideas and brings a great personality to our staff. He never has a bad day. He will have an immediate impact."
Courier follows Wilson from Southern Methodist University, where she started out as a graduate assistant in 2023 before then being promoted to assistant director of operations/special assistant to the head coach prior to the 2024 campaign. She also spent a year as a student assistant at Purdue Northwest during the 2022-23 season, joining the staff after finishing out her own collegiate playing career with the team the year prior. Her year playing with the Pride came after three seasons at Western Illinois, where she appeared in 35 total games. She graduated from the school with a bachelor's degree in Biology in 2023, and she would later earn her master's degree in Sports Management from SMU in 2025.
"Payton was with me at SMU, and I'm so happy she is on board here in Corpus," Wilson said. "She is the real engine to make our program go! Her work ethic is unmatched, and she can do anything. She is a people person, gets every job done, never has a bad day and is very self-motivated. Our program will be in great hands with her."
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