HARRISBURG — While you couldn’t necessarily see it under the masks, there were plenty of smiles at the Harrisburg Lady Bulldogs’ first basketball practice.

“I’ve played with these girls for a long time now,” said senior Lauryn Gribble. “We don’t always hang out at school especially with the situation we’re under, and it’s just fun to all be together now.”

“It’s just refreshing because we get to be here together with each other,” added junior Chelsea Davidson. “We’re like family because we’re a team, and I just love it.”

The players admit not being able to play and the fear of no season was starting to take a toll.

“It’s really awful honestly,” Gribble said. “At times I lose hope. I really love playing basketball, and I really want to further my career with basketball too. Just not knowing what’s gonna happen next is really scary.”

Lady Bulldogs’ head coach Jake Stewart saw it firsthand. “The kids were constantly asking ‘Coach, are we gonna have a season?’ Stewart said. “That was gut wrenching for me because of all the uncertainty of are we gonna play, or aren’t we gonna play?”

That all changed Friday when the Illinois Department of Public Health gave the green light to basketball and other high risk sports in regions that reach Phase 4 of the Restore Illinois plan, including Region 5 in southern Illinois.

“It was amazing because I love basketball,” said junior Stream Black. “I was devastated, especially over the summer because we had nothing to do. That’s all I do over the summer is play basketball, so Friday when they told us that we were coming back, I was really excited. I’m not gonna lie. That’s the happiest I’ve been in a minute.”

The opportunity to get back on the floor and practice did present an unexpected issue for Stewart.

“I guess I thought they’d be tired,” Stewart said. “But their motor–they’re ready to go. They’ve been locked up, caged up way too long. Their enthusiasm–I knew it would be high. I’m like ‘you come out’ and they’re like ‘no, I’m good. I’m staying on the floor, Coach.’”

There are still many unanswered questions such as how long will the season be and how many games will they play. The players said it doesn’t matter.

“It really doesn’t,” Davidson said. “I just want to be able to play finally, because we haven’t been able to play in forever. It’s just good to be back.”

That’s a feeling shared by many.