“All I know primarily is what I’ve been told, and I did see some games last year,” Purpero said. “I’m very optimistic. I’m not an insider, I’m not part of the program, I’m not a teacher, so I felt honored and humbled to receive the job.”
Purpero replaces Tim Hoelle, who stepped down after six seasons for personal reasons. Hoelle compiled a 102-42 record. The Rams won the Ohio Heritage Conference South Division two seasons ago and finished 16-6. Last year the Rams finished 11-12 and graduated four players, including league-leading scorer Sylvie Sonneman.
Purpero came to the area three years ago to work as a staff member at Athletes in Action in Xenia. He trains new staff members and serves as the local youth coordinator for Xenia and Greeneview high schools. Purpero coaches receivers in the Xenia High School football program and serves as team chaplain. He was the assistant freshman boys basketball coach at Xenia during the 2018-19 season.
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“I’ve been wanting to get back to a head coaching role for a while at a varsity level,” Purpero said. “On AIA staff, it takes the right kind of dynamic to figure it out with the job. This seems like it will be a good fit.”
Purpero has been with Cru, a ministry that oversees AIA, for 30 years. He has lived in Cincinnati, San Diego, Orlando, Italy, Germany, Florida again and North Carolina. He lived overseas from 2003-12 before moving to North Carolina. He is a graduate of Piketon High School and Miami University, where he played football and competed in track as a decathalete before injuries cut short his athletic career.
Purpero has coached basketball at public and private schools in many of the places he’s lived. Most of his basketball experience is with boys, but he said he’s excited to coach girls again.
“I feel like girls are more teachable, and that really makes me excited to be part of their world,” he said. “There’s the competition side, but they’re not one-dimensional. It’s the holistic view of treating them with respect and with value that excites me — to build them up and say what it’s all about beyond basketball.”
Girls soccer: Nikki Hurley is the new head coach at Greeneview. Hurley was a standout player at Xenia High School and is in the Wilmington College Hall of Fame.
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Hurley replaces Shawn Brown, who served as head coach for five seasons. The Rams are the defending OHC champions, finished 10-2 last year and lost in the district final to Division III state champion Cincinnati Country Day.
Brown had previously been an assistant to Dan Ludwick, who built the Rams into an OHC dynasty with nine league titles and five appearances in the district finals over 17 seasons.
Finding a team: Three 2020 Springfield graduates committed to play NCAA Division II football at Urbana. But when the university closed they had to find new schools.
Wide receiver James Wood will play at Division II Findlay, offensive lineman Trey Harper is headed to NAIA school William Penn University in Iowa and running back Tay’Veon Smoot is staying close to home at Wittenberg.
Openings: Greenon is looking for head coaches for girls volleyball and wrestling. One of the hires is pending school board approval.
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