11/14/2019 other sports Edit

Rutgers Softball recruits support HC Kristen Butler despite allegations

Richie O'Leary • TheKnightReport

Publisher

On Monday afternoon, the Rutgers softball program added five new faces to the program, when high school recruits from three different states made the decision to sign their national letters of intent to play for the state university of New Jersey.

About two weeks ago, Keith Sargeant and Matthew Stanmyre of NJ.com released an article with former Rutgers softball players citing that they were "physically and emotionally abused by wife-husband coaching team and the school did nothing.

Since the report came out Rutgers University Athletics Director Pat Hobbs released the following statement.

The other day I reacted inappropriately when informed that we would not be given some additional time to respond to a reporter’s questions concerning our softball program. In this case, the questions centered on concerns that were raised from parents and a number of former players regarding some of the practice drills and team activities for the softball team following the recruitment of a top flight Division I softball coach. The concerns were reviewed and where remedial action was necessary, changes were made. A report to the NCAA of a single Level III violation for allowing individual student athletes to practice a total of two hours more than allowable over the course of a two-month period, was reported to the NCAA. The volunteer coach, Marcus Smith, was separated from the team. As a leader at Rutgers University and someone who should serve as a role model to our young men and women it was wrong for me to use the language that I did. I apologized to the reporter but I owe an apology to the Rutgers community as well. It won’t happen again. The well-being of our student-athletes is always my first priority, and we will continue to be vigilant in addressing any concerns across all of our programs.

— Rutgers Athletic Director Pat Hobbs

One day after the news broke, Rutgers University president Robert Barchi announced that the university has appointed an outside law firm to investigate the matter, as first reported by NJ Advanced Media.

Despite the allegations from former players against current coach Butler and her husband Marcus Smith, five class of 2020 high school recruits remained committed to the program and still signed with the Scarlet Knights.

TKR spoke with those five signees to get their thoughts on the situation and why they support coach Butler and her vision for Rutgers softball.

C Kailee Howard (Lacey Township High School - NJ): “The news about RU didn't bother me or affect my commitment at all. I know that Rutgers is the place my heart is, and it is exactly where I want to be. Coach Butler is not only an amazing person, but she's also an amazing coach. She cares so much about her players and wants them to work hard. She is training her athletes to compete towards a championship. Coach Butler is one of the most caring and hardworking people I have ever met. She cares so much about this sport and she has so much passion. I know exactly what i'm stepping into, and I expect to train as hard as I can to work towards getting that Big Ten Championship. All of the signees are on the same page, and we know exactly how hard we have to work for it. I couldn't wait to sign with Rutgers yesterday and start my journey. I know it's going to be a great experience, especially with the amazing coaches and people I am surrounded by.”

UTL Kobie Hura (Ruben S. Ayala High School - CA): “When I first saw the article I was really shocked. From the beginning of my recruiting process Coach Butler has told me how competitive she is. She completely turned around the Toledo program and is doing the same thing at Rutgers. I am not threatened or feel like I’m going to back out of the softball program when I get there next year. I am excited to compete in a B1G program and excel. Coach Butler has known my travel ball coaches for over 4 years and they have never witnessed the “monster” she is being accused of. I absolutely love Coach Butler and the rest of the staff as well. Overall, Rutgers is a great school and the amazing softball coaching staff is a huge bonus. The article did not really affect me because I know committing to Rutgers with the coaching staff and academic support is setting myself up for success.”

1B Megan Herka (Bishop George Ahr High School - NJ): “It did not affect me because I know that Coach Butler wants to build and make the softball program the best that it can be.”

INF Kayla Bock (Coatesville Area Senior High School - PA): “Okay so immediately when I saw the press release, I couldn’t even say anything because all I could think of was how ridiculous it was. Coach Butler is one of the most down to earth people I’ve ever met and she has done more for my family and I then people realize. Coming from her background I only expect to get pushed by her, she wants a Big Ten Championship and that is what we’re determined to give her. If you want to win, you have to train like the best. And in order to be the best, you have to work at it. I verbally committed to RU in the fall of 2018 and I knew as soon as I met the coaches and stepped foot on campus, that this was the place I wanted to be. I was beyond excited to sign with Rutgers yesterday, and theres no doubt in my mind that I made the best decision for not only my life but for my career.”

OF Leilani Chavez (Charter Oak High School - CA): "When I heard the news, I didn't expect that from the coaches. I knew she was a competitive coach already, but only in a good way. The news didn't bother me because that was from other players opinions and how they felt. In my case I probably would've thought about it differently than they did. I don't think this would affect my decision about leaving the program because I joined this team based off of the players and how much I loved the coaching staff. I'm excited to be at Rutgers with all of them for the next four years."

It will likely take some time to figure out the results of what is turned up in the investigation, but at the end of the day multiple top-rated recruits chose to become Scarlet Knights regardless of the allegations from former players. They still chose to come to Rutgers because of head coach Kristen Butler.

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