UW Sports
Some UW softball players were 'way overmedicated,' report says

By Steve Miletich
Seattle Times staff reporter

ALAN BERNER / THE SEATTLE TIMES Dr. William Scheyer was accused of improperly dispensing drugs to the UW softball team.

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The report singles out former coach Teresa Wilson for putting her players in danger, but also lays blame on athletic department officials, including former athletic director Barbara Hedges, for failing to take action when problems were brought to their attention.

Many of the concerns festered because players were afraid of Wilson, in part because she had castigated those who went to physicians other than the team's doctor, according to the report.

The contents of the 80-page report, which will be made public in a 3 p.m. news conference today, were described by a UW official familiar with them. Outgoing UW President Lee Huntsman asked for the report six months ago, shortly after state health authorities suspended the medical license of team doctor William Scheyer.

Report on the UW women's softball program and alleged overmedication of players Introduction and background (815K PDF) Factual findings and analysis; allegations re: Dr. William Scheyer and assistant athletic director Craig Moriwaki (1M PDF) Coach Teresa Wilson's knowledge (1.3M PDF) What was known by assistant coach Scott Centala, Athletic Director Barbara Hedges, and senior associate athletic director Marie Tuite (1M PDF) The softball program environment; conclusion (697K PDF)

Scheyer was accused of improperly prescribing and dispensing large quantities of narcotics, tranquilizers and other drugs to UW softball players, often without proper documentation.

The report paints a picture of a team whose student-athletes were "overmedicated" or, in some cases, "way overmedicated" with narcotic painkillers or muscle relaxants, the UW official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The report says Scheyer and former assistant athletic trainer Craig Moriwaki improperly provided narcotic medications and other prescription drugs to the student-athletes.

Evidence uncovered by a four-member investigative panel suggests that Wilson and assistant coach Scott Centala knew — or should have known — about the improper practices, according to the official and other sources. UW officials reassigned Wilson in December, citing undisclosed findings by the panel, whose members have not been identified.

The report shows the university fell far short of a key goal outlined by the National Athletic Trainers' Association: "The health and safety of the student-athlete should be paramount to all involved in sports at the collegiate level."

Key findings in UW report An internal UW report, to be released as early as today, will blame current and former coaches and athletic-department officials for problems with the UW's softball program. A breakdown of key figures and their roles, according to the report: Teresa Wilson, former softball coach: She either knew that team doctor William Scheyer was improperly dispensing drugs to her players, or should have known because he was handing out medications in the dugout, buses, planes and hotels. She also created a harsh atmosphere that harmed student life for her players. Barbara Hedges, former athletic director: She failed to fully explore Scheyer's activities when UW doctors and trainers raised questions, accepting Wilson's claim that the complaints were politically motivated. Marie Tuite, senior associate athletic director: She failed to deal directly with the complaints about Scheyer, although she disagreed when Hedges refused to remove him. Scott Centala, current co-coach of the UW softball team and assistant under Wilson: He failed to grasp the misuse of drugs on the team and, along with Wilson, violated an NCAA rule that limits student-athletes to 20 hours a week of required activities.

The report also addresses the UW's overall responsibility to student-athletes, covering issues that many of Wilson's players raised with the panel. Players complained not only of improper medical treatment but also of an oppressive atmosphere in which abusive and demanding behavior by Wilson damaged their studies and student life.

Wilson, who has been given other duties in the UW athletic department until her contract expires in June, has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing during her 11 years as coach of the highly successful program. She filed suit against the university yesterday, alleging sex discrimination, wrongful discharge and breach of contract.

Her attorney, Rayla Allison of Minneapolis, said yesterday that she had not seen the internal report. She challenged any conclusion that Wilson ran an oppressive regime and said no concerns were ever raised in Wilson's reviews or her personnel file.

"Everything in there is glowing, and they continued to renew her contracts and give her raises," Allison said.

Allison said there has been a "groundswell of support from players, parents, boosters and alums that have stepped forward on her behalf."

The report, which was recently presented to Huntsman for review, concludes that Hedges failed to respond when UW doctors and trainers raised questions about Scheyer's practices, the official said.

	Barbara Hedges

Hedges accepted Wilson's claim that the complaints were politically motivated and came from people who wanted to take over Scheyer's duties, the report says.

Hedges has previously said she did not know of any improper activities by Scheyer and would have done something if she did.

The report also faults senior associate athletic director Marie Tuite for failing to deal directly with the warnings, although it notes that she objected to Hedges' decision to keep Scheyer and opted out of supervising the softball program.

Tuite could not be reached for comment.

Other criticisms are directed at Centala, a Wilson assistant who was named co-coach of the softball team after Wilson was removed.

	Teresa Wilson

The report finds that Centala should have been more aware that players were taking too many drugs, and that he and Wilson broke NCAA rules limiting student athletes to 20 hours a week of required activities such as games, practices and team meetings. The rule is meant to give athletes time for studies and social activities.

The panel, in a separate track of the investigation, found the softball team exceeded the 20-hour rule by an estimated total of 36 hours over the past three years, although sloppy record-keeping by Centala made it difficult to determine the exact figure.

UW officials quietly reported the violations to the Pac-10 Conference, which accepted them as secondary, or minor violations, and agreed to the UW's proposed penalties of reduced practice time in the future and reprimands to those involved, the UW official familiar with the report said.

No Pac-10 or NCAA violations involving drug use were found.

But the NCAA, which is already reviewing the athletic department's role in alleged gambling violations by former UW football coach Rick Neuheisel, could review the proposed softball penalties to determine if they are sufficient or related to a more serious "lack of institutional control" allegation lodged against the UW in the gambling matter.

Wilson incorrectly told Centala that meetings in which topics such as "team building" were discussed did not apply to the 20-hour rule, the official said.

Allison, Wilson's attorney, denied the allegation, saying UW compliance officers annually received the playing and practice reports that were accepted and approved.

"Not once did they ever issue a concern to coach Wilson or her staff," Allison said.

The internal investigation was ordered by Huntsman after the state Medical Quality Assurance Commission suspended Scheyer's medical license in October.

Scheyer, 76, has filed an appeal with the commission, challenging the emergency suspension. His attorney has maintained that Scheyer always acted in the best interests of student-athletes and in "full view" of the university athletic training staff and administration.

Scheyer, a Kirkland physician, worked with various UW athletic programs, including the football and basketball teams, from 1986 to 1999, when UW doctors began treating athletes. He remained as the softball team's doctor at Wilson's request, then as a volunteer until he was removed by Hedges shortly before his license was suspended.

The UW's internal review included many interviews with current players before Wilson's sudden but largely unexplained reassignment before the softball season began early this year.Some players expressed disappointment after learning that Wilson fought an attempt by a UW assistant athletic director to fire Scheyer in 2001, after UW doctors and trainers expressed their concerns, the UW official familiar with the report said.

The doctors and trainers were particularly concerned that Scheyer and a lead team trainer were prescribing corticoid steroids for sprains, despite evidence that they can cause long-term ligament and cartilage damage. (Unlike anabolic steroids, corticoid steroids may be prescribed to athletes for certain medical conditions.)

Campus pharmacy records reviewed by the investigative panel showed Scheyer was dispensing a disproportionate amount of drugs to softball players — for certain drugs, as much as 70 percent of the total dispensed to all UW athletes. That outstripped the amount given to athletes participating in football, basketball and crew, which have higher injury rates. Though prescriptions to athletes are regularly reviewed, no one apparently ever checked the individual drug-writing practices of doctors.

State health investigators found that Scheyer also opened unauthorized accounts, some with the UW's name, at pharmacies in Seattle and Kirkland, bypassing the UW's system in which all athlete prescriptions were to be filled through the campus pharmacy.

Wilson and her attorney have said she didn't know of any improper activities by Scheyer and didn't create an environment that allowed them to occur. Trainers and doctors made decisions involving players, they have said.

But the report concludes that drugs were so widely dispensed that Wilson either knew about Scheyer's practices or should have known about them. Pills were handed out on team buses, planes and hotels, and in the dugout, either by Scheyer or a lead trainer, who traveled more frequently with the team, according to the official.

Parents of at least one player told the panel they flushed drugs down the toilet when their daughter came home with what they considered to be excessive and unexplained amounts of pills, the UW official familiar with the report said.

When some players went to outside doctors and got advice that contradicted Scheyer, they were verbally attacked by Wilson, subjected to retribution and told to go only through Scheyer in the future, the official said.

Some team members played under the influence of narcotics, in part because of a "professional sports" atmosphere in which players were expected to play with injuries, the report will say.

The internal review overlapped with a federal-state criminal investigation that is pending.

Steve Miletich: 206-464-3302 or smiletich@seattletimes.com

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company

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