Engagement Insider

In sports, Ndidi Massay went to the highest level she could. Now she’s continuing that trend in life.

Massay, a one-time All-America softball player and an inductee into the Northwestern University Hall of Fame, is now the Director of Business Affairs for ABC News after a successful career in the sports world at ESPN.

“My dream was to be a professional athlete,’’ Massay said. “But that wasn’t possible in my sport at the time. Softball wasn’t even an Olympic sport then.’’

So she did the next best thing and put her journalism degree from Northwestern and a law degree from Notre Dame to work in the sports industry.

It began as an intern with the NCAA, then as director of game operations and legal counsel at the University of San Francisco. She later owned her own business negotiating contracts for people in sports and entertainment.

And then Massay became the director of business operations and helped develop ESPN RISE, a branch of ESPN.com devoted to high school sports.

“Working at ESPN was perfect,’’ she said. “I’ve always loved sports and I found a way to encompass my journalism background, law background and love of sports into one.’’

When the magazine’s offices relocated from New York to Bristol, Connecticut, Massay had a difficult decision to make and decided to leave the company to stay with her family in the city.

A few years later, ABC, owned by Disney the same company that owns ESPN, offered her the job she has now.

“A lot of people who knew me said ‘welcome back to the family’,’’ she said. “This was the perfect situation for me. I’m a deal maker. And that’s what I’m doing.’’

Massay is involved with the top news programs on ABC – Nightline, 20/20, and the brand new The Lookout to name a few. It’s not sports. But it’s not bad.

“I miss it a little bit,’’ she said. “But I’m so busy with what I am doing.’’

She’s also busy with her two sons, 12-year-old Miles and seven-year-old Mateo, coaching them in soccer and baseball. Yes, coaching them.

“You get strange looks, mostly from some parents, when you’re a woman coaching a boys’ team,’’ Massay said. “But I feel it’s important for young boys to see that women can coach sports, that women can play sports.

“I was a tom-boy growing up as a kid. I played against boys all the time.’’

Massay, who was a catcher at Northwestern, tells stories of warming up one of her young pitchers, not needing a mask and throwing the ball back to the amazement of some of the on-lookers.

“It hits them after a while,’’ she says. “And then I’m just a coach.’’

Massay played four sports in high school, volleyball and softball for all four years and she split time between soccer and basketball. Being a member of different teams has helped her throughout her life and in her job today.

“Sports are so important,’’ she said. “The things you learn from playing sports, teamwork, leadership, discipline, the passion to win, you use all of that in life. And then the preparation that comes from getting ready for a game. That’s so important. You would be surprised how many people are not prepared.’’

Massay has been prepared since she started playing sports as a young girl, through her college years and now in the workplace. She’s spreads her word to any young woman who is willing to listen and learn.

“Recently, I heard from a softball player, an All-American, who I had heard of and knew who she was,’’ she recalled. “She was looking for some guidance, a mentor.’’

Massay gave her the advice that got her to where she is today, namely use what you learned on the sports fields.

“The reason I’m a successful executive today,’’ she said, “is because of what I learned in sports.’’