Warde's Hayley Coppola Signs Letter Of Intent To Play Soccer At Tiffin University In Ohio

Fairfield Warde's Hayley Coppola loves soccer, but she doesn't want to be consumed by it 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The Mustangs' goaltender also wants to be a student and have a social life in college, which is one of the reasons she chose Ohio's Tiffin University, a Division II school, over Division I High Point in North Carolina.

Tiffin is located in the northwest corner of Ohio - near Toledo - and about a 12-hour drive from Fairfield. Coppola has been out to visit the campus three times.

"After doing research on the school, it seemed like a perfect fit for me," said Coppola, who officially signed her National Letter of Intent on Wednesday at Fairfield Warde. "Ive never been to Ohio before,  so I feel like that's  going to be a new experience. I think it's going to be a positive experience. "

The main reason Coppola picked Tiffin is because of its highly touted sports management program. She wants to become a sports scouting agent, but said she'd be happy to be involved in anything that has a ball.

"As long as I'm around sports, I'm a pretty happy camper," she said.

A member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, the Dragons are coming off a 12-6-2 season in women's soccer, losing in the first round of the Division II playoffs.

Tiffin coach Paula Fantini, who just completed her first season, is a native Brazilian, and next year the Dragons will be conducting their 2011 preseason training in Sao Paulo, Brazil - something that has Coppola intrigued.

"Brazil is one of the best countries for soccer, so I'm hoping to learn a lot of new stuff from there and (Fantini's) hopefully going to train me very well, " Coppola said.  "I'm going to come out a new player than I was when I first went there."

Tiffin's senior goaltender Denise Resende , also a native of Brazil, is graduating, so Coppola should be battling for playing time with sophomore Lindsay Gallagher. 

Copppola was a three-year letter winner for the Mustangs' soccer team and will be a four-year letter winner for the team's golf squad, serving as captain her junior and senior years.

Coppola also has played soccer for the Yankee United Soccer Club and the ODP Southwest District team.

Tiffin started looking at Coppola at the beginning of her senior year and the deal was completed in December.

If she had her druthers, she'd enroll tomorrow. Of course, first she has to graduate from Warde.

"I'm really excited for college," she said.  "I want to get out of here. I'm just so anxious to move on to the next step of my life."