ROCKY RIVER, Ohio — Rocky River residents asked News 5 for answers on why the head coach and assistant coaches of the Rocky River High School baseball team resigned. Here's what we found out.
An incident report from the North Myrtle Beach Police Department details how the Rocky River baseball team got into a fight with members of a college fraternity during a trip to South Carolina.
The team went to the Palmetto State for a tournament last week, won all four games at the South Atlantic Bank Invitational, and then went out on the town.
According to a parent, the team went out unsupervised, and the trip ended with a call to the police.
The report states that on April 11 at 3:41 a.m., an officer was called to meet a chaperone who said the baseball team "told him they were involved in a fight."
The chaperone told police that the students were walking in North Myrtle Beach when they were approached by members of a fraternity. The team said the fraternity members started "harassing them" until one team member "struck a member of the fraternity ... and left on foot."
The chaperone also said that another baseball player was then held and questioned by the fraternity brothers about where his teammate, who had dealt the blow, had gone.
But the fraternity told police a different story.
A member said that the frat members "were asking the boys to leave their property" and denied holding a baseball player against his will.
After the district learned what happened, both Head Coach Ed Piazza and Assistant Coach Michael Harper resigned.
No reason was given.
Piazza released a statement on Thursday. It said, in part: "While I understand the situation may have created concerns or negative perceptions for the school and the Rocky River baseball program...it is important to state clearly no wrongdoing occurred on our part."
The team was supposed to play its first baseball game since the incident under Interim Head Coach Craig Moro tonight, but it was canceled due to rain.
We will keep you informed when we learn more.
