Jodi Kest Named HPU Women’s Basketball Assistant Coach

HIGH POINT, N.C. – High Point University women’s basketball coach Chelsea Banbury announced Jodi Kest has joined the staff as an assistant coach today (June 24).

“I’m really excited to add someone with the level of experience that Coach Kest has,” Banbury said. “She has a wealth of knowledge about the game and I feel fortunate to have her join our program. I can’t wait to work with her and see what we can learn from each other.”

Kest joins the Panthers after spending the 2018-19 season as an assistant coach at Lynn University. Prior to her time at Lynn, she served as the head coach at the University of Akron for 12 seasons.

Kest is Akron’s all-time winningest coach in program history with 179 victories over 12 seasons. During her time in Akron, Ohio, Kest led the Zips to at least 19 wins in three consecutive seasons from 2014-16. She also took Akron to four postseason berths in the span of five seasons (NCAA 2014, WNIT 2013, 2015 and 2016) and five overall postseason appearances in eight seasons.

With Kest at the helm, Sina King and Rachel Tecca earned Mid-American Conference Player of the Year. King and Tecca were also named a Women’s Basketball Coaches Association honorable mention All-Americans.

Prior to her time at Akron, Kest was the head coach at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (TAMU-CC) for four seasons where she amassed a 73-40 record. She earned the honor of Independent Coach of the Year three times during her time in Corpus Christi, Texas. She helped guard Terra Andrews win the Division I Independent Player of the Year award in in three consecutive seasons (2003, ’04 and ’05).

Kest led TAMU-CC to a school-record 23 wins in the 2004-05 campaign and advanced to the second round of the National Invitation Tournament and received votes in the top-25 poll.

Before TAMU-CC, Kest served as head coach at Gannon University in Erie, Pa., for six seasons (1996-97-2001-02). During that time, she developed a two-time Division II All-American, 10 all-conference players, a pair of freshmen of the year and five all-defensive first team honorees. She left Gannon with the most victories in program history at 105.

Kest received her first head coaching gig at Wilkes University in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., where she coached the Colonels from 1986 to 1990. She guided Wilkes to the Middle Atlantic Conference playoffs for the first time in program history with a 16-10 record in the 1988-89 season. Kest was named the league’s coach of the year in that season.

Prior to being a head coach, Kest served as an assistant coach at Maine (1990-92), Cleveland State (1992-93), Nevada (1993-95) and Cal Poly (1995-96).

In 1986, she received a master of science in education from Northwest Missouri State, where she served as a graduate assistant coach from 1984-86.

Kest graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in physical education in 1984 from Slippery Rock University where she was a two-sport athlete in basketball and tennis. She was named an All-American in basketball in her final two seasons.