There’s no argument that the Hudson Girls Basketball team had lots of success this past year, but what most people don’t know is the people who helped the team get there. Coach Ernie D’Amato is one of them.
D’Amato also known as Coach D has substantially left a forever imprint on the Hudson Girls Basketball team. D’Amato has been coaching officially for 20 years and has recently helped coach the girls team as a volunteer for over 10 years.
As the years go on, the girls on the team have formed a very meaningful bond with D’Amato.“It’s the kids who keep coming back in this simple one sentence, the kids keep coming back…That’s why I go back. I want to be part of that atmosphere.” D’Amato praises the kids further, “it keeps me young, believe it or not, being around young people that want to learn the game keeps me going. Almost every kid I’ve coached at Hudson says, ‘thank you,’ and wants to learn, and it keeps me coming back.” What D’Amato doesn’t know is that his presence is the prime reason the people on the team act this way.
Multiple people on the girls team keep coming back to this amazing environment of women’s sports due to the fact that D’Amato is continuing to stick around and coach. One of these girls includes junior Abby Henderson, who plays point guard on the Hudson Girls Basketball team.
“He genuinely cares about seeing improvement in my game, which is why I place so much trust in him.” Henderson says. One of D’Amato’s best qualities is his bluntness and his joking nature. Everyone needs someone blunt in their life, it helps form a deep connection of trust knowing they are there to tell you the truth with no sugarcoating. D’Amato is one of these people which really helps deepen the trust and connections on the basketball team between everyone. Henderson agrees as well, stating, “The team can, without fail, count on him to make a hilarious, sarcastic comment to lighten the mood. The team can rely on his honesty. Coach D is not afraid to say what’s on his mind. His constructive criticism helps the team improve every day.”
There’s not a day that goes by where the girls on the team aren’t excited by his presence. Every single one of them brightens and loosens up at practice knowing that D’Amato is there.
He creates an atmosphere for the girls where they can be themselves and just have fun at practice, which is very crucial for a successful team. Not to mention he also is not afraid to tell you what you are doing wrong and goes out of his way to help fix it, as well.
D’Amato is exactly what other coaches wish they could be. He sets such high expectations for other coaches on how to help your players reach their full potential.
“He always keeps my best interests at heart.” D’Amato without a doubt never fails to show how much he cares for the girls and how watching them succeed through his eyes is his number one priority. “Winning districts was huge, but it was more important for me to watch you guys smile and climb up in that ladder and cut down the Nets and get your medals…and to see what you guys accomplished as a team, to win districts.”
It was never about winning for D’Amato. Yes, of course it is a good feeling and an added bonus to win the games and be successful, however for him, it was only about watching his players having fun and being one big team. To him, watching the girls grow alongside him and seeing their potential is what made him feel the real success of winning. That’s what coaching is all about. Every athlete has a coach in their life, but not all of them are lucky enough to have a Coach D in theirs.
