Two female college basketball players sue Pepperdine, claiming the University is running them off the basketball team because they are involved in a lesbian relationship.
The women behind the suit are Haley Videckis and Layana White who each transferred to Pepperdine from other schools because they believed they would have a better shot at the WNBA.
According to the suit however, several officials at Pepperdine, a Christian-based university in Malibu, began to suspect the players were in a lesbian relationship earlier this year and started looking for an excuse to boot them off the team.
The women claim the basketball coach, Ryan Weisenberg, gave a speech on the topic of “lesbianism” in April in which he said, “Lesbianism is not tolerated on this team. It is the reason why teams lose.”
Long story short, Layana claims she has eligibility issues with the NCAA and Pepperdine won’t help because of her sexual orientation. Haley claims she has recovered from a minor tailbone injury, but the school won’t clear her to play even though her doctor has signed off.
The women are suing for discrimination, harassment, retaliation and more and are seeking unspecified damages.
A rep for Pepperdine issued a statement to TMZ Sports saying, “We take allegations of this kind very seriously. We conducted an immediate and thorough investigation and found no evidence to support these claims.”
“The University remains committed to a diverse and inclusive environment.”
Apparently this is an ongoing issue. WNBA star Brittney Griner opened up about the issues she faced being a lesbian at Baylor. There was also a documentary called “Training Rules” which exposed Rene Portland’s policy during her 27-year career as the women’s head basketball coach at Penn State University, “No drinking, no drugs, no lesbians”.
