Mary Hile-Nepfel Last College: University of San Francisco, 1981 Position: Head Coach, 18th Year

USF women's basketball legend Mary Hile-Nepfel prepares for her 19th season as the head coach at the University of San Francisco and her sixth season as sole head coach of the Dons. Hile-Nepfel was named sole head coach following the 1999-2000 season, taking charge of a program she directed to national prominence with her husband Bill Nepfel for 13 seasons.

After missing more than half of the 2004-05 season with an illness, Hile-Nepfel is fully recovered, healthy and energized for her 23rd season associated with the university. Hile-Nepfel earned her milestone 250th victory when the Dons defeated Denver November 21, 2004 in the Rockies.

ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER HONOR USF's first female All-American, first inductee in the USF Hub Flynn Hall of Fame and the first woman honored with a retired number, Hile Nepfel was recognized as one of 75 "Legends of the Hilltop", honoring the top figures in Green and Gold history on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the University of San Franicsco. Hile-Nepfel was one of four women's basketball legends honored along with players Valerie Gillon and Brittany Lindhe and her husband, Bill Nepfel.

Just prior to the opening of the 2005-06 season, Hile-Nepfel was appointed as an interim Assistant Athletic Director and Senior Women's Administrator (SWA), following the departure of her mentor, Sandee Hill, who retired after nearly three decades of distinguished service on the Hilltop.

MORE TEAM ACHIEVEMENTS: San Francisco tied a school and league record last season when three players were named to the 2005 All-WCC First Team. All-time WCC steals leader Toni Russell earned an unprecedented second straight Defender of the Year selection, while Dominique Carter earned Newcomer of the Year - the third Don selected in the last four seasons.

During the 2003-04 campaign, Hile-Nepfel directed the Dons to the championship of the 2004 odwalla Classic with an impressive 67-59 victory against Kentucky. In addition, the Dons secured an upset against 2004 NCAA Tournament participant New Mexico during the non-conference schedule. In 2002-2003, Hile-Nepfel guided USF to their second straight upper division finish in the West Coast Conference, highlighted by a season series sweep of eventual league champion Pepperdine.

This success built off the achievement of the 2001-02 WNIT Tournament squad which posted the best overall and West Coast Conference record since 1996-97, finishing with an 18-12 overall mark and a 9-5 league slate, good for a share of second place. In addition, the Dons captured an appearance in the 2002 Postseason WNIT Tournament for the first time in program history. The team's accomplishments were all the more impressive after a rash of injuries at the beginning of the season cost USF their best post player, but San Francisco bounced back from an 0-3 start to win eight of their next 10 contests. The Dons posted three wins against 2001 NCAA Tournament teams, including a 72-68 win against Washington (Elite-Eight) and a 65-56 victory against Utah (Sweet-16). USF also captured wins against a pair of 2002 NCAA Tournament squads (Santa Clara and Syracuse).

REACHING MILESTONES: Hile-Nepfel entered the 2000-2001 campaign one victory shy of becoming the all-time winningest coach in program history. The Dons gave her victory number 197 with a convincing 105-51 pasting of UC Riverside in the 2000-2001 season opener. When the Dons downed Cal Poly December 21, 2000, Hile-Nepfel became just the fourth coach in USF athletics history to surpass 200 career wins at the University of San Francisco. An 88-60 West Coast Conference win against Gonzaga February 10, 2001 was the 100th league win for Hile-Nepfel, who became just the fourth coach in conference history to eclipse the century mark and enters 2005-06 ranked second in all-time wins with 125.

Hile-Nepfel, the first All-American in Dons basketball history, is one of just seven players to have a number retired in the rafters of War Memorial Gym. Hile-Nepfel was also the first woman to be inducted into the USF Hall of Fame in 1986.

ACHIEVING EXCELLENCE ON THE COURT AND IN THE CLASSROOM: Since taking the reins as co-head coach prior to the 1987-88 campaign, Hile-Nepfel has guided her players into unparalleled success on the hardwood and in the classroom. During her tenure on the Hilltop, Hile-Nepfel has coached 19 players who have earned 30 All-West Coast Conference First Team accolades. Brittany Lindhe, the only four-time first team selection in league history, earned Preseason Honorable Mention All-American honors prior to the 1996 and 1997 campaigns. A tireless recruiter, Hile-Nepfel and her coaching staff have produced six West Coast Conference Newcomer/Freshmen of the Year, most recently when Dominique Carter earned the honors in 2005.

Athletic achievement does not come at the expense of academic performance. Since Hile-Nepfel's first season at USF, 12 student-athletes have 21 selections to the WCC's All-Academic Team. In addition, two were chosen as the WCC Female Student-Athlete of the Year and two more earned NCAA Post-Graduate Scholarships.

USF BASKETBALL LEGEND: Mary Hile-Nepfel has a passion for the USF women's basketball program and has proudly represented the university as both a player and a coach for a good portion of the last 25 years. Just six seasons after completing an All-American playing career with the Dons in 1981, Hile-Nepfel returned to the Hilltop campus in 1987 along with her husband, Bill Nepfel, to become USF's co-head coaches. Their success as one of just a handful of husband-wife coaching tandems in the country was highlighted by three consecutive WCC Tournament Championships followed by three straight trips to the NCAA Tournament (1995-1997). After leading San Francisco back into postseason play with a WNIT berth in 2002, Hile-Nepfel has propelled the Dons into March Madness four times in the last 10 seasons.

Hile-Nepfel faces the challenge of leading Dons basketball into the future with the same characteristic enthusiasm and drive she demonstrated during her playing days. Mary's intensity on the court and her strong will to win characterized her as a player and are the same traits she instills in her players today.

POSTSEASON SUCCESS: Her biggest coaching highlights came during a three-year stretch from 1994-97. USF won three consecutive WCC Tournament titles, as well as a pair of regular season championships, and made three straight trips to the NCAA Tournament during this period. Hile-Nepfel has twice been named WCC Coach of the Year (1989-90, 1994-95). As a duo, she and Bill also earned District 8 Converse Coach of the Year honors and were finalists for the Associated Press National Coach of the Year in 1994-95. Hile-Nepfel boasts a 261-247 record in her 18 seasons as a collegiate head coach, all at USF. The Nepfels collected their 190th career win when USF upset defending Pac-10 champion No. 18 Oregon on January 2, 2000.

OLYMPIC COACHING EXPERIENCE: In 1993, Hile-Nepfel was selected to be an assistant coach for the East team in the Olympic Sports Festival held in San Antonio, Texas. She helped guide that team to a silver medal finish. The memories were fond for Hile-Nepfel, who in 1978 was selected to participate on the West squad in the first Olympic Festival in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

THE MAKINGS OF A LEGEND ON THE HILLTOP: Throughout her legendary playing career on the Hilltop and now as a top coach, Hile-Nepfel is no stranger to achieveing excellence at the highest level. She was a two-time All-American at USF and was twice a finalist for the Wade Trophy, awarded to the nation's top collegiate player. She is the leading scorer in USF history (female or male) with 2,324 points. In 1986, Hile-Nepfel became the first woman inducted into the USF Hall of Fame. Her No. 15 jersey is retired alongside those of other USF hoops greats Bill Russell, K.C. Jones, Bill Cartwright, Mike Farmer, Phil Smith and Brittany Lindhe, as well as coaches Pete Newell and Phil Woolpert. The USF record book is owned by Hile-Nepfel. She currently holds 11 career, nine single-season and five single-game records.

Hile-Nepfel excelled in the classroom as well, earning academic All-American honors twice and receiving the Anne Dolan Award as USF's outstanding female student-athlete in both 1979 and 1981. She has been nominated for the Verizon/CoSIDA Academic All-American Hall of Fame.

BEGINNING THE COACHING JOURNEY: Following her graduation from the Hilltop in 1981 with a degree in sports administration, Mary played professional basketball in Italy. She entered coaching as an assistant at Long Beach State in 1982. During her three seasons at Long Beach State, the 49ers won two conference championships and advanced to three NCAA regional finals. While at Long Beach State, she earned her Master's Degree in physical education.

Hile-Nepfel joined the coaching staff at the University of Hawaii in 1985 as an assistant. The following year she moved to Chaminade University, where she served as assistant athletic director.

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT: Hile-Nepfel is a past member of the Women's Basketball Coaches Association Board of Directors and served as the Division I representative for the West Region.

Mary is also active in the community, serving as a guest speaker for various events. Under her direction, the Dons are actively involved in the "Coaches vs. Cancer" program, benefitting the American Cancer Society. In addition, she heads the annual Mary Hile Basketball Camp, held at USF each summer.