Class of 1985

Joyce Byrd Connelly joins her brother, Anthony, in the Hall of Fame, cementing the legacy of one of the greatest families in Apex basketball history. Joyce, a 1985 graduate of Apex High School, was the leading scorer for the Lady Cougars when the girls’ team made their first deep foray into the state playoffs. Coming one year after N.C. State’s fabled run to the NCAA title in 1983, Joyce helped lead the “Cardiac Cougars” on two consecutive runs to the Eastern Regional finals in 1984 and 1985. The Lady Cougars were anointed as the “Cardiac Cougars” due to their penchant for overcoming seemingly insurmountable deficits time and time again. In this remarkable streak was one of Joyce’s greatest moments, as she scored 35 points to lead Apex to a thrilling 70-68 win over West Columbus in the District III championship game, including all 15 points that Apex scored in the two overtime periods and the game-winning basket with two seconds left.

As a senior, Joyce became the first Apex female athlete in school history to be named to the all-state team, as well as the first female athlete in school history to be selected to the North Carolina Coaches Association East-West All-Star game. Averaging 20.3 points per game during the regular season as a senior, Joyce poured in almost 30 points per game during the playoff run. She led Apex to a 26-2 record, with only a last second loss at the buzzer keeping the Cougars from the state championship game in 1985. She was selected as an all-conference player during her junior and senior seasons and was voted Triangle 3-A Conference Player of the Year during her outstanding senior season. In addition to those conference accolades, Joyce was also named to the All-East and All-Metro teams. One of her fondest memories, however, was prior to the Eastern Regional tournament during her junior season when she was selected as one of the earliest recipients of the Tom Suiter Extra Effort Award by the WRAL sports department.

Upon graduation from Apex High School, Joyce went on to receive degrees from Wake Technical College and North Carolina Wesleyan University. She came home, so to speak, to the Wake County Public School System where she had a 31-year career as an Administrator for Technology Services. Joyce is married to Marvin Connelly Jr., who is currently the Superintendent of Cumberland County Schools and pastor of St. Augusta MB Church. They have four children, Michael, Marvin, Tiana, and Phillip, and 11 grandchildren and 1 great grandchild