Mary Taylor Cowles said on Wednesday she has “some big weekends” planned this fall for official visits in the Lady Toppers’ recruiting efforts for the 2011 class.

Cowles has already secured a commitment from Pulaski Southwestern point guard Danay Fothergill and said she’s looking for more in-state prospects. The process for this class, she said, has been in the works for years.

“This class in Kentucky — it’s very, very good,” Cowles said. “I can’t thank my staff enough for the extremely long, hard hours we’ve spent in recruiting. I don’t mean as of recent — over the past two, three years with this particular class, there’s been a lot of time and energy spent with the class.”

Cowles has also offered Bowling Green High School’s Adrienne Tarrence and Franklin-Simpson’s Chastity Gooch. Tarrence told the Herald last month that she’s narrowed her list to Belmont and WKU and will visit WKU this weekend.

“Obviously that’s always a fun time after all our hard work in getting to know them and watching them play, now to be able to bring them to campus and let them get kind of even a better feel of what WKU is all about,” Cowles said of upcoming visits. “I think that makes a huge push in the recruiting efforts once we’re able to get them and their parents and family members on our campus to see what it’s all about.”

Cowles is not allowed to comment on specific players until they’ve signed a letter of intent. But she’s pleased with how things have gone so far.

“I’m very encouraged,” she said. “I’m very confident. And I’m very excited for what’s in store for us from a recruiting standpoint.”