By Anvil Welch
awelch@joplinglobe.com
Lauren Copple, headed for a fourth season of soccer at Joplin High School, signed a letter of intent with Northeastern Oklahoma A&M; College of Miami on Tuesday.
Copple, primarily a goalie as a freshman, will be operating for the third season as a midfielder/forward this spring for Joplin, Eagle coach Ed Miller said.
NEO coach Lisa Bell, who noted that Copple will be a part of NEO’s second season of soccer, came to Joplin for the ceremony.
“I have high hopes for our second season,” Bell said. “We should have nine or 10 players returning.
“Lauren (Copple) is projected as a midfielder,” Bell said. “But her position really will depend on just how well she fits into the mix. She could be one of our first players off the bench.”
Said Copple (who plans to study nursing): “I believe I can cope with about any position to help the team.”
“She really got along with our kids during her visit to our campus,” Bell said.
Said Miller: “Lauren has played a lot of soccer and definitely understands the game. She needs to work on becoming faster and quicker at the next level. The teams will be faster. Everything will become quicker-paced.
“I’m confident she can make the adjustment,” Mlller said. “She works very hard.”
The Eagles begin practice on March 2, Miller said.
Bell, a native of Miami, is a Choctaw (Okla.) High School graduate. She attended NEO two years before securing her degree from Pittsburg State.
“We scrounged around to find teams to play (including some NAIA schools),” a grinning Bell said of NEO’s first season. “We had some success, too. We played a 4-4 tie with Northern Oklahoma-Tonkawa, the only other team in our region, and they’ve had soccer for some 10 years.”
Joplin basketball and football fans frequently have seen the 5-foot-7 Copple perhaps without realizing it.
She’s the eagle mascot.
“Yes, and it does get hot in there,” she said.
