Sports Broadcaster Elected to State Coaches Hall of Fame

EAST HAVEN, CT — A renowned television sportscaster from East Haven is one of 10 individuals who will be honored at the 40th annual Hall of Fame induction dinner of the Connecticut High School Coaches Association, according to an announcement from the CHSCA.

Rich Coppola has been the Sports Director at FOX 61 since March 1989. He began his broadcasting career in radio at KC 101 in New Haven. He has worked as a field producer for ESPN and was a sportscaster for an NBC affiliate in Springfield, Mass.

In addition to preparing and delivering the nightly newscasts at FOX 61, he anchors the Comcast Sports Desk, Connecticut's only prime-time weekend sports wrap-up, a program that has been nominated on several occasions for a New England Emmy Award.

He has won Connecticut Sportscaster of the Year eight times, awarded by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association (NSSA). He also won the Associated Press award for Best Sportscast in 1991 and 1997.

A University of New Haven graduate, Coppola was inducted into the East Haven High Alumni Hall of Fame in 2000.

Other honorees are:

• Elaine Biercevicz Piazza - Lyman Memorial, Sacred Heart Academy
• Barbara Hedden - Cheshire, Mercy
• Robert Mastroni - Bunnell
• Howie Hewitt - Maloney
• Rich Langer - Haddam-Killingworth
• Ricky Shook - Danbury
• Martin deLivron - Avon
• Maj. Stephen Reich (dec.) - Shepaug Valley
• Edward Faulkner - Brien McMahon, Bassick

Tickets for the dinner are $46 and available in advance by contacting the CHSCA office at P.O. Box 632, Southington, CT 06487, or by calling 860-628-4122 or e-mailing John Fontana at jfontana01@snet.net. Doors open at 6 p.m.

Photo credit: CHSCA