It's challenging enough to be a first-year head coach but then throw that in the middle of a Pandemic.

That's the challenge for first year-head coach Kelli Jennings who takes over for long time head coach Scott Morris.

The Lady Jets open the season Jan. 27 against Mid-America JV at 5 p.m. in the Mabee Center.  According to NOC basketball attendance policy, no fans will be admitted to the game.

"I really appreciated the girls that have stayed and work hard daily," Jennings said.  It's hard when the coach you were recruited by leaves and somebody new and completely different comes in. It's also been tough because I still don't have an assistant and I know it can wear on the girls hearing the same things from the same person, so I'm grateful they've chosen to stay the course and be a part of this team." The Lady Jets have a number of returnees from 2020 including Madelyn Hankins, Lauren Wade, Abbey Phibbs, Hollie Wood, Cayti Moeller, and Alexis Pack. 

Jennings is hoping to build around the sophomore group.

"The returning sophomores that have stayed have been great," Jennings said.  "There's a maturity that I see in them and a confidence that you hope your sophomores have. When I watch film from last year, I feel like these girls have really grown and stepped into their new roles well."

What does Jennings see as the team's strengths?

"One strength I see is the friendships amongst the girls," she said.   I believe there's a genuine enjoyment of each other and it shows on the court. I think another strength is going to be our defense. I feel like we've come a long way since day 1, and our defense should be solid. We talk often how offense has off nights, but your defensive effort and positions can always be controlled."

Jennings does say that depth is going to be a concern.

"I think our biggest concern is our lack of depth. We have never had a big team (in numbers) and any time a new coach comes in, there's always turnover. With only two freshmen that started the year, and one of those has had knee surgery, we just don't have the numbers to be deep."

The lack of depth, however, does bring opportunity.

"Because we are such a small team in numbers, there's a chance each girl that is suited up on the bench plays in the game," she said.  "For us this year, it's truly going to be a team effort to win games, but I also believe that's an advantage to us. When a team is balanced and doesn't depend on just one girl—it means it can be anybody's "big game" any night."

Covid-19 has been a challenge for Jennings and her team.

"The first semester was difficult to ever get in to a rhythm because we would have one or two in quarantine, or the whole team would have to be in quarantine," Jennings said.  "It was hard to develop any team concepts or team chemistry when you felt like there was a constant disruption.  We are hoping that once season starts we can get in to the flow of things, but always be ready to adapt and remain flexible with what comes."