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OU Dean Of Students Says Soccer Incident Likely Not Hazing
< < Back toOhio University's Dean of Students says the suspension of the men's club soccer team is being blown out of proportion.
Ryan Lombardi says there is no evidence at this point that any member of the team was participating in a hazing activity.
O.U. temporarily suspended the team after one member reported others had pressured him to drink alcohol and he ended up in the hospital with a gash on his head.
But, Lombardi says that the team member was injured well after the drinking incident and happened when the player was no longer with members of the soccer team.
"This could just boil down to an alcohol violation for the team," says Lombardi.
The director of intramural and club sports sent a letter last week saying the team can't practice or play while the university's investigation is pending.
It noted that the school's student code of conduct prohibits hazing.
The letter says an unnamed club member was admitted to a hospital Sept. 9.
He told a student manager in a residence hall that he remembered drinking nine shots of liquor and beer and recalled interacting with the police.
He reported that his next memory was being treated at the hospital for a cut on the back of his head.
Lombardi says if the team was drinking together as an organization, that would still be a violation of the code of conduct.
University Judiciaries is meeting with representatives of the soccer team on Monday to talk about the incident.