TERESA WILSON OUT
AT
Following two days of rumors, the following story appeared Sunday morning in the Seattle Times. SPY declined to print the rumors, waiting for some form of official confirmation or media report. SPY has no comment on the particulars, and has been told that a formal statement by the University may be released on Monday. SPY has been told that the University and Teresa have been in negotiation but no details have been made available – and SPY has not yet heard from Teresa. While coaches in every sport are released every season, few are let go when they have winning records – and Teresa built championship teams. More than that, Teresa was sought-after as a clinician and instructor, and, we know from personal experience, beloved by her players. We are further saddened because Teresa is a valued friend. We admire her, not least, because through the years she has always sought to find something good to say about people, to be good-natured in triumph or defeat. Whatever the final outcome of this coaching tragedy, we wish Teresa Wilson the best of all possible worlds.
Permission
to reprint or copy this article/photo must be obtained from The
UW
ousts softball coach over scandal
By
Mike Carter and Steve Miletich
Seattle Times staff
reporters
Teresa
Wilson, who built the
"This
is the most shocking thing short of a death that's ever happened to me," an
emotional
"I
now have my reputation and career to think about," she said. "I'm
obviously going to have to talk to people smarter than I am about these sorts of
things."
A
high-placed source at the
|
The
decision for
University
officials had hoped to complete the internal investigation by the end of the
year, in part so they could decide
But
the investigation is continuing and won't be completed until after the beginning
of the new year, a UW source said.
Attempts
to contact Jim Daves, spokesman for the UW Athletic Department, were not
successful. Athletic director Barbara Hedges, who hired
In
2001, when other team doctors raised concerns about the source of drugs in the
UW training rooms and the quality of care being given softball players,
assistant athletic director Dave Burton attempted to fire Scheyer.
The
state's Medical Quality Assurance Commission investigation revealed at least one
softball player who had to undergo treatment for addiction and a trainer who
routinely obtained prescriptions for narcotics under Scheyer's name. Scheyer,
the investigation showed, had accounts set up at several outside pharmacies so
he could bypass the system the school had in place for tracking drug
prescriptions given to student athletes.
Scheyer
reportedly handed out pills to students in envelopes and out of his pockets,
sometimes without examining the students or charting the treatment in their
medical records.
Scheyer,
in his statement to investigators from the Board of Pharmacy, said a female
softball team coach — the name is deleted from the transcript — "always
knew" which players were being given drugs. He denied, however, that his
medical decision on a player's ability to take the field could be overridden by
the coach.
Several
softball players were questioned during that investigation, which began last
April. One softball player described how she was given tranquilizers and
painkillers before and during games so she could play injured. Another said she
felt the object of the sports-medicine program was to get players on the field
and that it did not always act in their best interests.
That
player also said that some athletes were given medications so they could play,
but that it was to remain "hush-hush."
In
2001, she was selected to be among the pool of national coaches for the USA
Softball women's team.
She
came to the
Mike
Carter: 206-464-3706 or mcarter@seattletimes.com;
Steven Miletich: 206-464-3302 or smiletich@seattletimes.com
Copyright © 2003 The Seattle Times Company
(permission requested
by SPY prior to publication)
end
