<p>Seems that Peter Lalich was dealt with more harshly than Huguely and I haven’t read anything about Lalich being violent. </p>
<p>In 2008, Athletic Director Littlepage made the following statement after a string of football player arrests </p>
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<p>He should be asked to address exactly what he did to address those problems.</p>
<p>Kevin Blackistone is not exactly a disinterested observer here. He is on the faculty at U Maryland, another top seed in the NCAA men’s lax tourney, which in the past several tries has not been able to beat UVa. </p>
<p>Have to agree with the admittedly few posters on this thread who have voiced disdain for the majority on here who are spending days and days engaged in gross and inappropriate speculation regarding this terrible tragedy. Fortunately, those who have been directly impacted are likely unaware of this blood sport by a few parents obsessed with the college admission process. Over the past few years I have gained valuable information from CC, but very rarely has that come from a thread in the “parents cafe.”</p>
<p>Of course, all of the posters have a right to muse here all they want and have time for. I just wish you would check your voyeurism, personal agendas, etc. before doing so.</p>
<p>AVA55- So why are you reading the thread?</p>
<p>CTTC–I too think they should end the season early in Yeardley’s memory. To ask a grieving mother whether the team should play is inappropriate. They should have told her they would not play out of respect for the tragic death of her child. They should have shown the leadership to make that decision, and not put such a burden on a grieving mother. Yes, I suppose she might have truly wanted the game to go on, as her own way of honoring her daughter, but she also may not have been ready to make such a decision and as others have said, more critical information has unfolded which might have altered her decision. </p>
<p>this statement below reflects the kind of twisted thinking that needs to change in the leadership at UVA as well as likely many other colleges;
Starsia, a former player at Brown, told the Richmond Times-Dispatch in 2006: “The party-hard, play-hard mentality has been at times a little bit of a badge of honor. There’s a certain recklessness about a lacrosse player that as many people find endearing as find it unattractive.”</p>
<p>Stumbled over here from a link by CTTC on the UVa thread requesting students come over and add to the fray. Obviously, neither CTTC, nor most of you for that matter, have children at UVa or you would know they are in exams now and don’t need even further distractions at this time. </p>
<p>Was disheartened to read the tenor of the discourse. Of course the issue of domestic violence is a very serious one, but far too many of the posts smack of jealousy, personal agendas, or attempts to bash a school posters have no personal connection to. </p>
<p>Don’t worry, though, I will leave you to your shameless bashing after this post . . . .</p>
<p>AVA - I would love to make it my personal agenda to clean up college athletics, but that is a job much too big for any one person, any one program, any one school. I want to know, personally, what UVA has done to address the behavior of its athletes, other than kicking some off and protecting others. I want to know exactly what Littlepage did to address the issue since he made that statement in 2008. He should be asked that in public and often and he should have to outline the steps he took. If this tragedy doesn’t prompt lots of questions, lots of scrutiny and lots of change, what on earth would?</p>
<p>Every parent has a stake in this regardless of whether they have kids at UVA. Can you really believe that any of us are jealous of UVA’s #1 ranking in lacrosse? That is just bizarre. Perhaps leaving change to those who are personally connected to the school hasn’t worked so well.</p>
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<p>The discussion was about the honor code, code of conduct, etc., and I went to the UVA forum to ask if any students could clarify. Here is my post:</p>
<p>“It would be helpful if current UVA students could contribute to the thread over on the Parent Cafe. There are questions about the UVA discipline policy for alcohol offenses, particularly on sports teams, and maybe some students (even better, student athletes) could answer them for us. The lax team had a number of alcohol-related convictions, yet it appears that the students stayed on the team.”</p>
<p>I hope that the reason no UVA students have made any meaningful contributions to this thread is that they are busy with exams. Or is there a UVA-wide code of silence now in effect?</p>
<p>CTTC, to be fair, not a lot of college students participate on CC. Once they get into college, they often depart CC. I don’t think UVA is different in that regard. Not to mention it is final exams.</p>
<p>
I did mention final exams.</p>
<p>I know you mentioned final exams, but all that aside, I see nothing wrong with the fact that not a lot of UVA current students are participating as not many college students are even on CC. Most are pre-college students. You did insinuate that the lack of current college students participating on this thread could be due to a code of silence. Students not answering questions about UVA discipline policy is not an indicator of a code of silence. I’m sure policies can be researched. </p>
<p>I am curious why this young man was allowed to stay on the team given the kinds of offenses he was racking up, including with the law. As I wrote upthread, I read that the coach had a rule of drinking only one night per week and if caught, you could be thrown off the team on the second offense. That is why I question that in the case of Huguely, he had much worse offenses than drinking more than once a week and was still on the team. Those questions would be directed toward administrators, not students.</p>
<p>Maybe someone could pop a question in the “ask the dean” forum.</p>
<p>The Ask the Dean forum is not for this at all. The “Dean” is Sally Rubenstone, an independent college counselor. She advises on the college admissions process, and not this sort of thing. She is not a dean of a college. She is unrelated to the member named, Dean J, who works at UVA.</p>
<p>I’m not seeing much hope of reflection on the part of the sport of lacrosse in this article. </p>
<p>The girls’ team managed to get a practice in while in Baltimore for the funeral. </p>
<p>[Reeling</a> Virginia teams try to prepare for NCAAs - SignOnSanDiego.com](<a href=“http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/may/10/reeling-virginia-teams-try-to-prepare-for-ncaas/]Reeling”>http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/may/10/reeling-virginia-teams-try-to-prepare-for-ncaas/)</p>
<p>Edited to add that I don’t mean to judge the decision to practice in Baltimore. It may have been of great comfort to the family and, right now, that is most important.</p>
<p>from the article:</p>
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Just a week after? Try the very next day after she was buried!</p>
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And I’m surprised why Starsia thought his team should continue its season.</p>
<p>I don’t disagree with the teams finishing the season. I think the problems are deep and serious, but bowing out of the NCAAs doesn’t solve anything, in my opinion. I think the playing of the sport is pretty inconsequential at this point.</p>
<p>I agree with MOWC. I have nothing against the teams finishing their season. The issues that need to be addressed are deep and take time. I don’t feel that the students on these teams should have to not continue with the full array of their college activities. Playing the games does not preclude grieving or addressing of issues. Both can happen.</p>
<p>Also, I did not know Yeardley Love, but I do have girls about the same age. And knowing this age as I do, and knowing that Yeardley loved her sport and her team, I have a gut feeling she’d have wanted the team to finish the season.</p>
<p>I don’t have a problem with them playing either. I’m sure the family wanted them to play. </p>
<p>I would have liked to have seen something in the article I posted suggesting some willingness to examine the sport. Instead, from the Maryland coach. </p>
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<p>Now this does come from a school that practically burns down the college and the town when they win a basketball game. </p>
<p>If it takes using a broad brush to get control of these teams and use common sense discipline, then so be it.</p>
<p>I feel for the kids at UVa because I am sure the media is making their lives miserable. And, while I think the approach of graduation may have had something to do with the crime itself, the timing stinks–right before and during exams, right before the NCAA tourney. </p>
<p>But, while admitting that I really don’t know much at all about lacrosse, it does seem as if there MAY be some problems with the culture of the sport. So, perhaps the NCAA should step in here and set some rules. If it doesn’t, then reality is that teams which recruit players who have been in trouble with the law will have an advantage over teams that won’t. Teams that suspend players for offenses will lose to teams that don’t. IF --and I freely admit that I don’t know, so I really do mean IF–there is a problem with the sport itself or with all sports or some sports–then I think only the NCAA can take steps which will be effective. </p>
<p>The NCAA should have rules as to whether a MIP while enrolled in college should require a suspension, whether a conviction for DUI should result in being kicked off a team, whether a conviction for disorderly conduct and/or public intoxication should require suspension for at least a season. In other words, I think that there ought to be something akin to “sentencing guidelines” for such infractions. Maybe some NCAA body should determine the punishment in each case, since the coaches have an obvious conflict of interest. </p>
<p>So, has anyone seen any statements from the NCAA itself saying that it plans to study the abuse of alcohol and/or drugs and/or domestic violence among lacrosse players and/or college athletes? I haven’t. </p>
<p>I’d go further and say that there should be some person or body within the NCAA itself which makes the decision as to whether a team involved in a tragic situation should be permitted to participate in tournament play. I don’t think that UVA itself should be making this decision. Please note–I am not saying that UVA should be barred from tournament play. Nor am I saying that UVa made the wrong decision. I am ONLY saying that I think it would help if there were someone like the baseball commissioner who made the ruling. </p>
<p>UVa would be criticized about its choice whether it made the decision it has made–to play–or made the opposite choice and didn’t play. I think that the NCAA itself should make the decision. </p>
<p>That’s less important, however, than putting into effect a uniform system for recruiting and punishing players who have gotten themselves into trouble. And, again, I’m NOT saying that UVa failed to act appropriately. I don’t know what the coach knew about Huguely. I just think that the NCAA should set some rules which apply to all the teams in a league.</p>
<p>^^I totally agree, I’d like to see much more effort come to bear on the NCAA, and divisions not just Division 1, than on an individual college with regard to athletes and alcohol or drugs. I said earlier that I felt UVa made the correct decision to continue in the tourney since this entire incident was the action of one person regardless of all the speculation of who knew what on the teams.</p>
<p>jonri, I have talked to a lot of my friends with kids in lacrosse programs and several of them have said that they are uncomfortable with things that are swept under the rug. I’m sure things are swept under the rug in all sports but they know lacrosse. Two of my friends feel strongly that there is already a policy of “hear no evil” on the part of the coaches and administration. The coaches know more than they admit to and don’t want to know everything because they may have to act or report to the administration. The administration encourages the coaches to handle everything they can without their involvement because they don’t want to discipline the teams. As long as the team is winning, no one wants to know anything that will spoil the season. </p>
<p>So, if the NCAA cracked down more, there may be even more incentive to hide infractions. I wish I knew the answer to that problem. Somehow, kids must have incentives to police themselves and report and coaches need incentives to discipline. Winning at all costs flies in the face of those things.</p>