A group of student athletes at Sherrard High School are threatening to boycott the upcoming girls basketball and softball seasons, and they may be challenged to follow through on that threat.
The players are upset that the varsity coach of both sports, Becky Ince, was dismissed by the Sherrard Board of Education last week.“We’ve all decided to stick together through it all, and we’re going to fight this until the end,” said senior captain Tarran Shaffer. “The basketball and softball teams have all signed a letter stating that we won’t play without Coach Ince being the coach.”
Asked if the Ince matter would be reconsidered by the board, Sherrard Superintendent Becky Rodocker responded in an e-mail that “the board has taken their vote and their vote stands.”
That vote was last Wednesday, dismissing Ince as both softball and girls basketball coach. She was entering her sixth year as head coach for basketball and just completed her seventh for softball.
The first day of girls basketball practice is Nov.1.
“We haven’t got a response from the superintendent,” Shaffer said, referring to the letter e-mailed to Rodocker. “We will wait this out, and we will fight it.”
Ince remains an English teacher at Sherrard Junior High. Sherrard school board President Lori Baker and Rodocker declined comment on the matter following last Wednesday’s meeting, saying it was a personnel issue.
Ince has indicated she has retained an attorney but has declined to elaborate on the details of last week’s closed session meeting.
