For some athletes, a coach is simply the director of the team; the figurehead that teaches the plays, determines the substitutions, and coordinates the game schedules. But to others, namely the Lady Macs, the position of a coach supersedes that role.
Coach Nesta Felix, who had to resign last week from her position as Head Coach of Yeshiva University’s women’s basketball team, was the team leader. She was the heart and soul of the team. Coach Nesta did not think of her coaching position as a job with players to simply deal with, but rather she viewed her team as her family.
“Coach’s passion fuels our passion. Her dedication inspires our dedication. The team always comes first for Coach. She epitomizes what it means to infuse heart into basketball, helping others, and life,” says Alyssa Greenberg (’15).
We are her, “ladies,” her “fighting Maccabees.” We have never witnessed a more dedicated, motivating coach in all of our years playing basketball. Coach Nesta treated us as her children, “She made me love basketball, treated me and cared for me, as I was her child. I knew when I walked into practice that she had been thinking about us all day,” says team member Rachel Mirsky (’16).
Coach Nesta joined Yeshiva University without much previous exposure to Yeshiva lifestyle. From the outset, she began adapting to the new double curriculum, kosher-keeping, Sabbath-observing Yeshiva ladies, and did not stop growing in that respect.
Coach Nesta was always eager to learn about our customs, and invested in our personal lives. She cared about our grades in school, and not only our physical maintenance, but our mental health as well. “Coach Nesta wants to be involved in all aspects of our lives. She adjusted our practice schedule to meet our needs. We had early practice so we could ALL (including Coach) go to the Chanukah Chagigah,” SAID captain Ester Kerzner.
Coach Nesta made sure to buy kosher snacks so that she would be able to share with the team, “Her integrity and love for the game drove me that extra hour in practice, those extra few shots in the gym, and pushed me through each game. She is one of a kind, and gives 110%, one hundred percent of the time,” continued Mirsky.
Coach Nesta always believes in us and gives us confidence every game no matter how daunting our competition may seem. She teaches us to strive for excellence, push to our highest potential, and to never give up.
“After two and a half years, she taught me what dedication truly means. She gave her all to ensure that we got the most out of our experience on the basketball team. She helped make my years at Stern better than I could have ever imagined” says Kerzner.
Coach Nesta taught us the value of communication; how it controls life both on and off the court. Every move on defense must be voiced out loud in order to work as a team, and every concern about the team must be expressed in order to work on it. The Lady Macs have become a stronger unit because of their ability to communicate with each other as ball players and as friends, and we are all thankful to Coach Nesta for instilling that in us.
As for the rest of the season…The Lady Macs are left in the very capable hands of Coach Alex Winnecker, who is currently the assistant athletic director at Yeshiva University. Erica Lemm, the women’s Assistant Athletic Director, says the hiring process for next year will begin in the summer.
Coach Nesta will always be a role model to us. She brought us to a new level of basketball, and we will forever be grateful. We will most definitely take not only the skills and plays that she taught us, but the life lessons as well. As Yael Hausdorff, member of the Lady Macs put it, “she was more than just a basketball coach, she was a life coach.” We learned what it means to be committed to a cause whole-heartedly, and to never stop improving. The Lady Macs have plenty of games left, and they are determined to finish what Coach Nesta Felix has started.