In the spring, during the weekend of the NCAA Women's Final Four in Dallas, Deanna Mayza participated in a three-day coaching workshop and a one-day professional hoops combine. As one of five point guards on the same team, Mayza struggled to showcase her skills during the combine.  "Still, it was a good experience," she said.

            Mayza, an Upper Hanover resident who recently completed her playing career at the University of Hartford, isn't done playing the game. She recently signed a one-year contract to play professionally in Denmark.  "It's a dream come true," Mayza said.

            She will play for Lenvig VB, located along the coast of the North Sea, a first division team in the Denmark League. Mayza, who has been communicating with team officials via email amidst a six-hour time difference, is not familiar with the team's style.

            Mayza, who leaves for Denmark in August, expressed confidence she can adapt to the professional game which begins in September and spans nine months. By watching her brother Tim, a pitching prospect for the Toronto Blue Jays, she has learned the importance of trusting the way she plays in order to keep progressing.  "It's going to be a grind, being away from home for so long and not being able to play in front of my family," she said. "When I go into a slump, I have to figure out a way to get out if it."

            According to Mayza, she signed with Lenvig VB after Slammers Basketball, a German firm that represents male and female players throughout the world, posted video of her on the Internet for coaches and executive throughout Europe.

            She described the myriad European professional leagues as a training ground for players looking to win a job in the WNBA, a 12-team league in the United States.

            In March, the 5-foot-7 guard completed her four-year starter with the Hawks with 1,222 points, tied for eighth overall, second in assists (476) and fourth in 3-point goals (160). A Communications major at Hartford, Mayza finished her career averaging 10.71 points in 114 games.

            Head coach Kim McNeill described her as a coach on the floor who thrived in Hartford's fast-break, high-tempo offense.  "She likes to create for others," McNeill said earlier this year. 

            Mayza is preparing for her new career by working out with a professional trainer, lifting weights and shooting each week. In between, she is working local basketball camps. 

            "My goal has always to play professional basketball," she said. "By my sophomore or junior year in college, I knew I could do it."