Heather Coppola was named the second head coach of the women's lacrosse program in June of 2018 following a brief appointment to the interim head coach just a month earlier.
In her first season at the helm in 2019, Coppola guided the program to their best-ever finish as they went 11-7 with a 7-4 mark in the GLIAC. The team hosted their first playoff game and reached the GLIAC Tournament semifinal after defeating Davenport in the opening round.
With the strong showing in Coppola's opening season, the team had four players earn All-GLIAC honors, three earn IWLCA Academic honors as well as their first Google Cloud Academic All-District pick in Maddie Hentges.
Coppola spent the previous season as Concordia’s graduate assistant coach and offensive coordinator.
“Everything fell into place perfectly for Heather, and we couldn't be more excited to promote her to head coach,” said Mark "Lunch" McKenzie, director of athletics at Concordia. “Having already had a year to evaluate her, we knew she had the qualifications to be an excellent candidate, but after conducting a search, she quickly rose to the top. Her passion for the sport is exactly what we’re looking for. She has the vision for how to not only build a winning program, but a program that is well-rounded. We are excited for her to take the reins of a thriving program and I can’t wait to see her at the helm.”
The Fulton, New York native has a sturdy foundation of coaching experience that spans all three NCAA divisions as well as the prep level. Prior to accepting the graduate assistant position to pursue a master’s degree in management and leadership from Concordia, Coppola spent a year as interim assistant coach and operations manager for Robert Morris University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
“I would like to thank athletic director Mark McKenzie and associate athletic director Regan McAthie along with the rest of the Concordia administration for their confidence in me to lead this program,” said Coppola.
She continued, “This community and campus is the perfect environment to continue to grow the sport of lacrosse. I’m excited to take a strong foundation and push it to the next level. I am extremely grateful to be part of the Concordia family.”
She secured her first head coaching position as an interim high school varsity coach before advancing to the college ranks at Allegheny College (Pa.). She was named offensive coordinator at SUNY Oswego near her hometown before accepting her first Division I position at Robert Morris in 2016.
She helped Robert Morris set the program record for wins in a season with an 11-7 finish in 2017 and helped SUNY Oswego tie the school record with a 12-win season in 2016. She also helped Allegheny to the NCAC playoffs in 2014, showing success at each of her stops as she climbed the coaching ladder.
As a player, Coppola was a four year member of the lacrosse team at Alvernia University in Reading, Pennsylvania, helping the NCAA Division III program to an ECAC Championship in 2012. She earned her degree in social work in May, 2013 and graduated with honors.
Her coaching career began as she finished her undergraduate degree at Alvernia as a student assistant.
