John Taft was announced as the head coach of the Haverford College women’s tennis team in September of 2020. Taft came to Haverford from Amherst College where he served as an assistant coach since 2018.

In his third season at Haverford, Taft led the Fords to their second consecutive Centennial Conference semifinal. The Fords had four members recognized on the All-Conference teams. Sophomore Ellie Esterowitz earned All-Centennial first team singles while juniors Mimi Lavin and Abbey Russano were named to the second team. The doubles pairing of Esterowitz and Lavin earned honorable mention recognition. Fitzgerald was also named to the Centennial Conference All-Sportsmanship Team. Ellie Esterowitiz earned the chance to compete for the NCAA Singles Championship, the second straight season the Fords sent an individual qualifier to the NCAA Championships. The Fords were recognized as an ITA All-Academic Team along with ten student-athletes being named to the All-Academic Team. Esterowitz was additionally named to the PhillySIDA Academic All-Area Team. The team finished with an 11-8 overall record and a 7-2 record in conference play.

In his second season at the helm, Taft led the Fords to a Centennial Conference semifinal. The Fords were well-represented on the All Conference Teams. Sophomore Abbey Russano was named to first-team single honors while first year Ellie Esterowitz and sophomore Mimi Lavin were each named to the second team singles honors. Abbey Russano earned a chance to compete for the NCAA Singles Championship. The doubles pairing of senior Anne Tobin and first year Rachael Fitzgerald joined the Esterowitz/Russano pairing in earning second-team doubles recognition. The Fords were recognized as an ITA All-Academic Team along with Abbey Russano and Mimi Lavin earning a spot on the All-Academic Team. Abbey Russano was named PhillySIDA Academic All-Area Performer of the Year. The squad finished with a 12-7 overall record and a 7-2 mark in Centennial Conference play.

Although his team was able to play just one match in his first season, the Fords made the most of their opportunity with a 9-0 sweep of Bi-Co neighbor Bryn Mawr.

During his first season at Amherst, Taft helped guide the Mammoths to the NESCAC regular season championship and a spot in the NCAA quarterfinals. His team finished that season ranked fifth in the country. Individually, Taft helped mentor two All-Americans, including one NCAA singles quarterfinalist.

In addition to his coaching responsibilities, Taft took on the role of recruiting coordinator with the Mammoths and helped them secure the third-ranked recruiting class for 2020. Taft also had oversight of the team's strength & conditioning plans, scheduling, and player development.

Prior to coaching at Amherst, Taft was the graduate assistant coach at Smith College where he received his master's degree in Exercise and Sport Studies in 2019. That program focuses on intercollegiate coaching, particularly in women's athletics. His responsibilities as the assistant coach at Smith included planning and implementing practice plans, match coaching, and recruiting. He also directed a youth summer tennis program for the Campus School.

Before Smith, Taft was in New Jersey coaching high performance junior tennis players from 2014-17. A PTR certified professional, Taft coached and helped develop over 90 sectional and nationally ranked players who were 4-star recruits and higher. He used his expertise as a Dartfish Certified Technologist to break down video and match play to further develop the athletes through on-court training and off-court sessions with thorough film analysis.

Taft, a Certified Speed and Agility Coach, earned a B.S. in physical education from SUNY Cortland and a B.S. in studio art from SUNY Oneonta. A four-year student-athlete at SUNY Oneonta, he was named first-team All-North Atlantic Conference (NAC) in both singles and doubles while also earning a spot on the 2011 All-Academic Team.

Taft got his start in college coaching at Cortland during the 2012-13 season. While there, he served as a Teaching Assistant in three different undergraduate courses and was inducted into the Tau Sigma Honor Society for his academic efforts.