Former University of Wisconsin women’s basketball players filed a lawsuit against ex-coach Marisa Moseley, who resigned in March, the UW Board of Regents and former women’s basketball administrator Justin Doherty. In the suit, the former student-athletes alleged mental and psychological abuse on the part of Moseley.
According to CBS Sports, the five former student-athletes include Alexis Duckett, Krystyna Ellew, Mary Ferrito, Tara Stauffacher and Tessa Towers. The former Badgers are seeking both compensatory and punitive damages.
The lawsuit claims Moseley, “unconstitutionally toyed with the mental health of her players, including Plaintiffs, as a means of exerting control over every facet of their lives.” The women described being discriminated against based on physical or mental health needs, including one incident in which the team was required to sign agreements releasing their medical records or risk losing their spot on the women’s basketball team.
Duckett, Ellew, Ferrito, Stauffacher and Towers said they reported Moseley’s behavior to Doherty, but he failed to take any action in the situation. The complaint alleges that several other players and even parents also tried to report Moseley’s behavior.
According to ESPN, the plaintiffs also pointed to a specific event in which Ellew was “experiencing a mental health event,” and Moseley responded by keeping Ellew alone in the back of a locker room and threatening to call the police if she did not seek inpatient mental health care.
Towers also pointed to specific incidents in which Moseley singled her out and bullied her based on her mental health diagnosis. Towers first made these allegations in January when she posted to social media about Moseley forcing her to “sign a release form permitting her coach to access her therapy sessions.” Moseley then allegedly threatened to kick Towers off the team, and threatened her fellow teammates against continuing friendships with her or they would lose playing time.
The former Badgers said the university’s “policy of laissez-faire inaction” allowed this abuse to continue. UW has not released a statement regarding the lawsuit at this time.
