At this year’s NEPSAC girls Super Sunday, Ayo Hart delivered food to college coaches and handed out trophies to other championship winning teams.
She also happened to be coaching that day in the Class A championship, leading her Sacred Heart Greenwich squad to the program’s first-ever title in its second straight appearance.
Hart, who just wrapped up her ninth season at Sacred Heart, is also NEPSAC Girls Basketball Coaches' Association (NEPSGBCA) president, and a part of her role as president is to help run Super Sunday — including championships and All-Star games.
Last season, Sacred Heart advanced to the championship as well, which coincided with Hart’s first time running Super Sunday. Sacred Heart fell to three-time defending champion Loomis Chaffee.
“I cannot blame our loss on Super Sunday. I'm not saying that, but I can tell you that I felt very unsettled going into that game, because I was running over here, and then running the (coaches) meeting at 12:00 and trying to go present trophies, and then two college coaches are looking for me over here, and then they ran out of candy over there, and they want packets,” Hart said. “I was a hot mess. ... It was our first time ever in the finals, so our kids were a little bit nervous. It doesn't help when they're looking at me and I don't look settled.
“I remember after that, saying to myself, if I'm ever fortunate enough to be in the championship again, I'm going to handle this very differently.”
Finding herself back in that spot, Hart made some adjustments to her schedule for the day. A couple of other coaches helped present trophies, the coaches meeting was kept concise, and Hart made time to get prepared ahead of the game.
“I went and I found a quiet room. I went through my pregame routine,” she said. “I just got myself into a good headspace that I needed to be in, and I was very protective of that.”
Hart is in her fourth year as NEPSGBCA president, but even before taking on the role, she was active in meetings during her first year coaching at Sacred Heart in 2017.
“I remember raising my hand, even in 2017, and saying, ‘Look, I'm new here, but why don't we do this, this and this?’ … I have a lot of pride in everything we do. It's not just about Sacred Heart, it's about the conference in general, and I'm really proud of the conference we have,” Hart said.
“One of the reasons we have the conference we have is because of the people in it, so I've been really fortunate that, obviously, I haven't done any of this on my own. We have a tremendous board group of volunteer coaches who, like myself, care selflessly about the association, not just about their team.”
Hart’s passion for NEPSAC and the student-athletes is clear through the work she has done to enhance the visibility of girls basketball in the conference
One of the first things Hart wanted when she took over as president was to get a Scholastic Showcase on the books for NEPSAC girls basketball. While logistics didn’t work out for the first year, the inaugural Scholastic Showcase took place in June 2023.
“That was, for sure, one of my proudest accomplishments, not because of something I did, but because of the opportunity it afforded our kids,” Hart said.
The Scholastic Showcase brings college basketball coaches, from Power Five schools to high academic Div. 3 schools, to one place where exposure is guaranteed. Hart spoke to a specific player who did not have any Div. 1 offers entering the showcase and then was committed to Yale within a few weeks.
But beyond the Scholastic Showcase and Super Sunday, which was standing-room only at times this year, “it’s the community that I feel proud of building,” Hart said.
“The girls understand it's about NEPSAC — not just about Sacred Heart, or not just about Ethel Walker, not just about Loomis. It's about NEPSAC. I think the girls also feel that,” Hart said. “I go to a lot of basketball camps in the summers, and I love seeing the NEPSAC kids. They identify with each other. They hang out. Then they play against each other all year, and they realize that they have that common bond in being NEPSAC student athletes. … It's not just about an event as an event, as much as it is about the impact it's having on the kids.”
Her players feel Hart’s impact.
Eva Wilkerson, a Sacred Heart senior who has been coached by Hart for five years, scored a game-high 19 points and was named Class A Tournament MVP. Immediately after the championship victory, Wilkerson spoke to Hart’s commitment.
“She's amazing. I've never met anyone like her in my entire life. She's such a hard worker. I have nothing bad to say about the woman. She does everything for everyone,” Wilkerson said.
Another thing that Hart takes pride in is the increase in the NEPSAC’s social media presence, because she now recognizes players by name when she sees them on the court.
“I'm a people person. I like that connection, and that’s more important to me than creating reels just for the likes and stuff like that,” Hart said. “I don't think social media is the end-all, be-all when it comes to recruiting, but I do know coaches follow us, and if I can help promote a post that a kid does on her own account. … I think that's a good feeling.”
Hart has handed out many trophies and plaques as the NEPSGBCA president on Super Sunday — but on Sunday, she received her first championship trophy.
“The saddest part for me after Super Sunday was the fact that we are on spring break, because I felt like we had this phenomenal accomplishment, the girls were so happy, and then I had to wave to them as they left to get on the bus.,” she said. “But I still feel as sad as I did last year, because I miss them. I miss seeing them, I miss the connection and all that.
“I'm very blessed. I'm very fortunate that I get to do what I love doing."
