Three Stadium basketball players suspended. Coaches, administrators outraged

Three boys basketball players from Stadium High School have been suspended following an incident at a district basketball game on Saturday against Todd Beamer at Stadium.

Stadium High School coaches and administrators are calling for the suspensions to be lifted before Stadium’s state tournament game on Tuesday, saying the suspensions are unfair. In an email written to Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA) executive director Mick Hoffman and WIAA assistant executive director Justin Kesterson, Stadium athletic director Bridgette Lopez wrote that “the evidence clearly demonstrates that there was no behavior warranting ejection” and that the WIAA’s lack of a hearing process violates the players’ due process rights under state law.

The incident occurred near the end of the game, with Stadium leading by double digits and closing in on the win. In a video of the incident, a Todd Beamer player is seen arguing with a fan on the sideline, before another fan intervenes and shoving breaks out.

Minutes earlier, the three Stadium players who were later suspended — Ne’Quan Brown, Baaroc Rivers and Kellen O’Halloran — were subbed out of the game and were sitting on the Stadium bench at the time of the incident, across the court from where it took place.

When the shoving began, Stadium head coach Dominic Batten can be seen signaling to his players on the bench to remain where they are. Several Stadium players stood up from their seats but stayed in the area of the bench. Batten then motions to the Stadium players who were in the game to come back to the bench.

The penalties were imposed by the West Central District Games Committee, which was acting on behalf of the WIAA, a spokesperson for the WIAA confirmed to The News Tribune on Monday. WIAA member schools abide by rules put in place by the National Federation of High Schools. The particular rule violation in this incident is 10-5 (Article 5) which pertains to leaving the bench area during a fight or when a fight may occur.

The rule states the bench personnel, including the head coach, shall not leave the confines of the bench during a fight or when a fight may occur. There is an exception made for coaches, who may enter the court in a situation where a fight may broke out — or has broken out — to prevent the situation from escalating.

The WIAA said it believes these membership-approved rules and processes have been followed and the request for reconsideration of the penalty against Stadium is under legal review.

Scott and Amanda O’Halloran, parents of Kellen, are attorneys and said they will be representing all three student-athletes, saying their due process rights were violated.

“Our son, Kellen O’Halloran, is one of the student-athletes the WIAA suspended and disqualified from a play-off game over the weekend with no notice, no hearing, and no opportunity to appeal,” they wrote in an email to the WIAA. “Given that time is of the essence in reversing the unlawful WIAA decision before tomorrow, Tuesday February 21st (the play-off game date), this letter also serves as a formal demand to also send this letter to the WIAA’s legal counsel for immediate response.

“We reserve the right to file legal action in Pierce County Superior Court and obtain a TRO (temporary restraining order) requiring the WIAA to allow Ne’Quan Brown, Baaroc Rivers, and Kellen O’Halloran to play in the play-off game tomorrow night pending a WIAA hearing where we will present video evidence and testimony that these three players stood calmly by their coaching staff AND the game officials who significantly did not reprimand them and who only took action against the Todd Beamer players who engaged in the altercation and stormed the court,” the email states.

If the suspensions are upheld, Brown, Rivers and O’Halloran will be ineligible to play in Stadium’s regional state tournament play-in game on Tuesday against Shorecrest. The winner will face Gig Harbor on Saturday, with a trip to the state tournament at the Tacoma Dome on the line. Brown, Rivers and O’Halloran are all starters for the Tigers.