Ursinus College Cancels Men's, Women's Swim Season After Hazing Violations
COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. (CBS) - Ursinus College in Collegeville, Montgomery County has canceled the rest of the season for both the men's and women's swim teams following an investigation into hazing and underage drinking. The stunning announcement came a week after some swimmers at Ursinus established a new pool record.
The swim teams were about halfway through their seasons and were scheduled to swim this past weekend at West Chester, but they did not compete.
The college made the announcement Friday that the men's and women's swimming teams had committed violations of the college's anti-hazing policy and student code of conduct. In early September, the school initiated an investigation into an incident that involved alcohol and underage drinking.
As a result of that investigation, the administration decided to cancel the remainder of the 2019-2020 swimming season. The school also announced that coach Mark Feinberg supports and agrees with the decision and that he has been placed on probation.
A statement posted to Ursinus Athletics' website reads, in part, "While the decision to cancel the season was difficult, the safety and well-being of every student at Ursinus are our greatest priorities. Ursinus College does not tolerate hazing or any action that is antithetical to our values and our mission."
Ursinus is the latest area college to cancel a team's season over the behavior of student athletes. Earlier this month, the University of Pennsylvania announced the cancellation of the women's volleyball team's season after the discovery of "vulgar, offensive and disrespectful" signs in the team's locker room.
Read the full statement here.