Mary Hile-Nepfel, a dedicated member of the San Francisco community for 23 years, led the University of San Francisco women's basketball program not only on the court as an All-American player but also from the sidelines as a successful coach. Throughout her tenure as a player and coach, Hile-Nepfel, a Bay Area native, used her experience to better connect with the community.
 
A four-sport star for Peterson High School in Sunnyvale, participating in volleyball, basketball, tennis, and softball, Hile-Nepfel came to the Hilltop in the fall of 1977 as an acclaimed athlete. Her size, speed and jumping ability allowed her to excel in every aspect of basketball.
 
"I was a multi-sport athlete in high school, but I eventually honed in on basketball," Hile-Nepfel said about her high school career. "When I received the opportunity to come to San Francisco on an athletic scholarship to play basketball, it was a dream come true."
 
After graduating high school, Hile-Nepfel was introduced to a new world as she entered her first season of competition at San Francisco, embracing a new community as she exited her previous life in the South Bay.
 
"The first word that comes to my mind is diversity," Hile-Nepfel said about the San Francisco community. "I did not encounter a lot of diversity while growing up in Sunnyvale, but coming to the University of San Francisco, I did, and it created a sense of what my identity is today." Hile-Nepfel goes on to explain, "USF opened my eyes to see people for who they are and to appreciate our differences.  Just like building a team with players having different abilities, we must build our communities upon our differences to make us stronger."
 
Using that new identity, Hile-Nepfel established herself as a star when she stepped foot on the court and finished her four-year career on the Hilltop as the all-time leader in points and rebounds. Her dominant play on the hardwood has withstood the test of time, as she continues to own the top spot in the women's record books, totaling 2,324 points and 1,602 rebounds.
 
Throughout her playing career, Hile-Nepfel garnered multiple accolades, being named a three-time Kodak Regional All-American and a four-time All-NorCal selection and being a two-time Wade Trophy finalist. Named after three-time national champion Delta State University head coach Lily Margaret Wade, the prestigious Wade Trophy is a yearly award to honor the nation's top collegiate women's basketball player.
 
Led by Hile-Nepfel, the Dons captured the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) Regional Championship in 1979 and won the NCAC title in 1980. Her successes also went beyond the hardwood, as she was a two-time Academic All-American and twice was named the recipient of the Anne Dolan Award as San Francisco's outstanding female athlete.
 
"My teammates, coaches, classmates, and professors that helped me along the way," Hile-Nepfel said on what she remembers most about her time on the Hilltop. "It was always about the relationships I created, developed and sustained throughout the years."
 
To this day, Hile-Nepfel remains the all-time leading scorer for a San Francisco basketball player, male or female. Her number 15 jersey was retired in her honor in 1981 and currently hangs in the rafters of War Memorial at the Sobrato Center. In 1986, she became the first woman inducted into the Hall of Fame for her contributions to the program.
 
"It was such an honor to be the first woman to be inducted into the Hall of Fame," Hile-Nepfel said. "However, I was always looking at the bigger picture, and earning this honor would allow other women to be recognized for their accomplishments in their sport."
 
Continuing her basketball career post-graduation, Hile-Nepfel competed professionally overseas in Italy for one year before returning to the West Coast and receiving her master's degree from Long Beach State. In just six short years after completing her playing career at San Francisco, Hile-Nepfel returned to the Hilltop, teaming up with her husband Bill to become co-head coaches of the Dons at the start of the 1987-88 season.
 
"When I decided coaching was going to be my profession, there was only one place where I wanted to do that," Hile-Nepfel said about returning to San Francisco. "When Bill and I came back to coach together, it was an opportunity to come back to USF and see what we could build here."
 
She shared head coaching duties with her husband until the end of the 1999-00 season and took over the reins in 2001 and remained as head coach until 2006, compiling 270 career wins. During her coaching career, along with Bill, their teams won three West Coast Conference championship titles and made three consecutive trips to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Women's Basketball Tournament.
 
The two-time WCC Coaches of the Year led the Dons to their first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance in 1995. The following season, they led them to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen. The team knocked off nationally ranked Duke and Florida during its tournament run and finished the season ranked No.16 in the final USA Today poll.
 
"We were blessed with a great group of women that season," Hile-Nepfel talking about the 1996 tournament team. "They were connected, worked hard, and earning a Sweet Sixteen berth was a reflection of how committed they were to each other."
 
Remaining in the Bay Area after her 19-year coaching career at San Francisco ended, Hile-Nepfel took a sabbatical from coaching until 2013, when she became the head coach of the girl's basketball program at University High School.
 
"It was an interesting transition," she said. "I thought I was hanging up the whistle forever, but I had an opportunity to coach at the high school level, and I decided it was the right time for me … I had other offers before then, but I was never ready."
 
Being called back to coaching several years after leaving the collegiate level, Hile-Nepfel was able to reflect on how she impacts young women as a mentor. 
 
"I believe I was brought back to be a coach but lead in a different way than I previously did, and the girls at University High School have helped me do that. The biggest thing they have taught me is to meet them where they are. They are so young they do not know what is ahead of them, and most of them play basketball for the joy and not just the championships. I want them to enjoy it, and I believe I can show them joy by how I care about each one of them."
 
As a player, coach, and mentor, Hile-Nepfel's passion for excellence solidifies her as a true legend of San Francisco Athletics. She continues to give back to the community as a high school coach as well as serving as the Director of the Kinesiology Physical Activity program at San Francisco since 2016.
 
Hile-Nepfel will be honored for her legacy at San Francisco along with alum Jerome Gumbs of Empower Me Academy on Sunday, Nov. 26, when the Dons' basketball programs compete at Chase Center. For tickets to the USF Legacy Games, visit chasecenter.com/events.