Four years ago, a freshman Taylor Francis sat in Girls' Basketball Coach Rob Hoepfl’s office, politely answering his questions. What are your goals? What do you hope to accomplish? Taylor, appearing unassuming, calmly declared that she planned to break the all-time scoring record at Pingry. Coach Hoepfl, who occasionally hears such ambitious proclamations, was pleased but not exactly wowed by the quiet kid with the bold prediction in front of him. After all, she hadn’t done anything yet.
A year later, she would be interviewed for an article about her older brother Jake, a Pingry senior who has since gone on to pitch at Villanova. There was not much that stood out—she was polite, friendly, if a bit quiet and unassuming. Yet right at the very end of the interview, this quiet sophomore made another bold prediction: she would be recruited to play softball for a D1 school in the Big East, just like her big brother.
When Taylor Francis makes a prediction—no matter how polite or humble she may sound—it’s a good idea to pay attention. It can be tempting to dismiss a quiet personality when they talk. But there is no dismissing the banner hanging in Bristol Gym, emblazoned with her name on it, or the sheer breadth and depth of the records she now holds at Pingry, a list so long that it seems to stretch on like an absurd CVS receipt. She’s first in career points—that’s the big one—a record that was previously held on the Girls side by Megan Horn in 2018 at 1,450 points; and for the Boys side, by Jeff Tanenbaum, when he set it at 1,642 points back in 2008.
The all-time points now? 1,793.
Taylor, who had been heavily guarded all season by defenders determined to stop her, not only reached a new all-time record, but she also set a record for the most points in a season. All while being guarded nonstop.
The laundry list of stats are as follows:
Career Stats:
1st in Career Points - 1,793
8th in Career Rebounds - 358
2nd in Career Assists - 228
3rd in Career Steals - 236
2nd in Career 3pt Made - 210
1st in Career 2pt Made - 422
1st in Career Free Throws Made - 302
1st in Career Games Played - 103
Season Stats:
1st in Points in a Season (24-25) - 612
3rd in Points in a Season (22-23) - 453
4th in Points in a Season (23-24) - 449
6th in Steals in a Season (24-25) - 78
1st in 3pt Made in a Season (24-25) - 66
5th in 3pt Made in a Season (21-22) - 52
7th in 3pt Made in a Season (23-24) - 47
8th in 3pt Made in a Season (22-23) - 45
2nd in 2pt Made in a Season (24-25) - 155
8th in 2pt Made in a Season (22-23) - 115
9th in 2pt Made in a Season (23-24) - 114
3rd in FT Made in a Season (24-25) - 98
6th in FT Made in a Season (22-23) - 86
9th in FT Made in a Season (23-24) - 77
Game Stats:
4th Most Points in a Game - 35
6th Most Points in a Game - 33 (4 times)
7th Most Assists in a Game - 7
3rd Most 3PT Made in a Game - 6 (4 times)
7th Most 2PT Made in a Game - 12
10th Most 2PT Made in a Game - 11
1st Most FT Made in a Game - 12
3rd Most FT Made in a Game - 10
That Taylor, who is indeed going to play softball as a recruited athlete for Georgetown next fall, would hold such an astonishing array of stats in a sport she is not even recruited to play in is a surprise to everyone—everyone, perhaps, but the shy kid who made that prediction years ago to her skeptical Coach.
***
Ms. Courtney: You have a nickname, right?
Taylor Francis: Yeah. The people from Pingry call me Pink Mamba.
***
If there is one defining physical characteristic of Taylor, it’s the ubiquitous presence of the color pink. When she was little, it was a pink bow. As she got older, it became a pink headband. Growing up with two brothers, it started as a way to differentiate herself from them. Sure, she was just as competitive as her brothers, but she would still rock a pink bow while beating them.
It helped her stand out on the court, too. “When you’re playing other teams, the defenders are always like, ‘I got the girl in pink’,” she says. “It’s just kind of a way to be known out there.”
“I think it stems originally from having brothers. It was a way to look different,” observes Coach Hoepfl. “But,” he adds, “it’s become a part of her identity: The Pink Mamba.”
According to Coach Hoepfl, the nickname was originally coined by former Girls’ Varsity Basketball Assistant Coach Taunita Stephenson. “We use Kobe quotes,” says Coach Hoepfl. “He’s famous for having what they call the Mamba mentality. Essentially, that’s a fierceness, a competitiveness, a drive—a will to win. It’s a willingness to do the hard work that most people aren’t.” Taylor’s work ethic drew comparisons to the iconic basketball player, and her nickname was a “nod to that grittiness and toughness and willingness to do the extra work.”
Sometimes after a game, if Taylor is frustrated with her shooting, she’ll simply head to the gym and train instead of heading home to do her homework. “The number of times where she went to a trainer after a game because she wasn’t happy with how she shot,” recalls Coach Hoepfl, trailing off. “Or the Sundays in the gym. Or watching films of herself and asking questions. It’s that desire and willingness and passion to be better.”
Four years ago, when she quietly made a bold prediction, did Coach Hoepfl know she would do it? He shakes his head, and admits that being driven on that level can be mysterious. “I wish I could say where kids get that from,” he says thoughtfully. “I think a lot of it is just random.” He notes that she has a supportive family, before admitting, “I don’t think that alone gets you to do that… She wanted it from the very beginning.”
***
If there is one thing that comes from Taylor’s determination to get better, it’s giving herself options, if only to prove a point. Whether it be in academics or athletics, she doesn’t have an “off” switch, or even a “good enough” switch.
Back in her sophomore year, Taylor took a computer science class, a curious choice considering her lack of enthusiasm for the subject. Still. She had her reasons. Namely that her twin brother, Connor, has a gift for the subject.
“I’m always wanting to do the best I can,” she explains. “And I’m not a big computer science person… but my twin brother Connor is.” She pauses here. “I kind of just took the class to prove a point that, yeah, I can do it, too.” Was it easy? No. But that’s where the Pink Mamba mentality comes in. “I ended up being able to do it, even though it probably took me a lot more time to get the work done.”
Taylor decided to simply outwork her lack of natural aptitude for the subject. “Even if I’m not as naturally gifted in that subject, I was still going to work hard enough to be able to get an A,” she clarifies in a friendly manner, as if taking on an entire trimester of computer science homework was the only obvious answer to satisfy her competitive streak.
When it comes to options, Taylor made sure to break the Girls scoring record and Boys scoring record as well. Was it to prove that she could do it there, too?
“Yeah,” she says with a smile.
And even though she is going to play softball for Georgetown University next fall, more than a few people think she had a choice there, too, though Taylor is quick to downplay it. But not her coach. “She is 100% a Division One basketball player,” he says adamantly. “She made the choice early, around sophomore summer, and it obviously worked out.”
Still. It hardly seems common for an athlete to spark chatter in two D1 sports. “Very unusual,” he says pointedly. “100%. And there’s not any doubt.”
***
This time next year, the only sign of Taylor Francis will be her name on a banner in Bristol Gym, and her pink headband, left behind in retirement, hanging up in Coach Hoepfl’s office, adorning a trophy and perhaps confusing visitors who never saw Pink Mamba play.
As he watches his player get ready to graduate from high school, Coach Hoepfl reflects on that prediction she made at their very first meeting. “I don’t think you ever, truthfully, think anyone’s going to do that,” he says, referencing the all-time points record. “Because no one’s done it before, right?” Yet one thing has become clear over the years. When Taylor Francis makes a prediction, you better order the banner. “What’s different about her is she said it was going to happen from our first meeting,” he says. “That confidence, that grit, that fierceness has been consistent.”
Now it’s Rob Hoepfl’s turn to make a prediction about his former player’s future, at Georgetown and beyond. “She’s going back to the beginning,” he says. “She’s so competitive. She’ll do whatever it takes.”
“I think she’s going to tear it up.”
***
To contact the author: Sara Courtney, Communications Writer
Photo by Natalie Gonzalez