Courtesy of Matt McLagan, Caldwell SID

Caldwell College welcomed basketball shooting expert and motivational speaker Dave Hopla to the George R. Newman Center recently. Hopla is a nationally-known shooting instructor who has worked with several professional, college and high school teams and players. He also has worked for the Toronto Raptors and the Washington Wizards of the NBA. With such a prominent figure appearing on campus, Caldwell College Executive Director of Athletics Mark A. Corino invited the student-athletes from rival Bloomfield College to share in the experience. Corino and Bloomfield Athletic Director Sheila Wooten have known each other for several years, and have created a positive relationship between the two athletic departments. As a result, all athletic programs from both Caldwell and Bloomfield, normally fierce competitors, joined together in the Newman Center to benefit from Hopla's lecture.

The student-athletes witness an incredible shooting exhibition in which Hopla made hundreds of shots from varying distances, all while talking about how to improve and build towards success. Although the lecture focused on shooting a basketball, Hopla's approach and techniques can be applied to other endeavors outside of athletics.