Busting stereotypes is nothing new for Allison Oropallo. She grew up playing hockey on boys’ teams until she was 14, and the boys grew a lot bigger than she was. But Oropallo didn’t stop playing hockey, and she didn’t stop trying to break stereotypes.

“I am definitely not the norm,’’ Oropallo said. “I’ve never met another woman who does what I do. And I think it’s important because I think women would be great [in nontraditional roles]. They look at things differently.’’

Oropallo, who lives in Stoneham, is a technology engineering teacher at Ottoson Middle School in Arlington, where she is also the Legos robotics coach. She recently finished as the runner-up on HGTV’s “All-American Handyman,’’ one of 20 contestants and the only woman in the final four.

“It was a great experience,’’ she said. “It was certainly hard work, really long hours, but it was the most satisfying thing I’ve done. It was hard and the fact that I made it all the way through felt really good.’’

Oropallo happened to be browsing online the day auditions in Philadelphia were announced.

“I called my mother and I’m like, ‘Let’s go on a road trip,’ ’’ she said. “So we went and I did it, and then I got a call like three days before [filming began].’’

Conveniently, shooting the show in Brooklyn coincided with the April school vacation, so Oropallo only had to take a few extra days off. But they were long days.

“A lot of times we had 22-hour workdays,’’ she said. “It’s high, high stress. You’ve got cameras on you at all times. You’re going against all these other really talented people. You’ve got Mike Holmes and Scott McGillivray, who are judging your projects. People watch every day.’’

Oropallo, 28, was well prepared for the challenge. The jobs included building a shed and constructing a kitchen in the finale after finishing a living room, an obstacle course with standard handy-person tasks, and several other trials. The contestants were judged on their overall knowledge, the quality of their work, how well they managed a crew, and their ability to get the job done quickly and efficiently.

Jared Polston of Pottsville, Pa., won the grand prize, a $10,000 Sears shopping spree and an HGTV talent development deal, but Oropallo was voted the viewers’ fan favorite and received a $1,500 gift certificate to Sears.

Known as “Score’’ to her friends, Oropallo, a native of Saratoga Springs, N.Y., studied civil engineering and played hockey at the University of Connecticut. She also studied applied technology at the College of Saint Rose in Albany and has a master’s degree in education from SUNY-Plattsburgh.

http://articles.boston.com/2011-11-03/news/30356084_1_shopping-spree-engineering-hgtv

Nov. 3, 2011

NOTE:  Thank you, Rose Oropallo(mother and reader of FW). for sending this article about your daughter.