Sun Belt Reprimands, Fines South Alabama Athletic Director Over Comments Following Tournament Fight

Mobile, AL (BuzzReport) — The Sun Belt Conference has publicly reprimanded and fined Joel Erdmann, the athletic director at the University of South Alabama, for comments he made following the suspension of three Lady Jaguars players involved in an on-court altercation during the conference tournament.

According to a statement published on the conference’s website, Erdmann’s remarks violated provisions in the Sun Belt Constitution and Bylaw 10.5.4(a). The bylaw prohibits member institution personnel, including student-athletes, from making derogatory comments or demonstrating negative reactions about officiating to any source.

The disciplinary action stems from an incident during the second round of the Sun Belt Conference Women’s Basketball Championships on Feb. 4, when a fight broke out between Cordasia Harris of South Alabama and Tracy Hueston of Coastal Carolina University.

Officials said a referee was injured during the altercation.

Following the incident, Harris, Hueston and six additional South Alabama players were ejected from the remainder of the game. The six Lady Jaguars were removed for stepping over the bench line during the confrontation, a violation of NCAA rules governing bench conduct during fights.

As a result, Harris, Amyah Suton and Daniela Gonzalez were ruled ineligible to compete in the team’s next tournament game against Texas State University the following day.

In a statement issued after the suspensions were announced, Erdmann said an internal review by the university concluded the actions of the three suspended players did not meet the definition of “fighting” under the NCAA rulebook.

“This judgment has negatively impacted the tournament experience of our suspended student-athletes and stripped them of limited opportunities to compete in the postseason,” Erdmann said in the statement.

Conference officials have not disclosed the amount of the fine imposed on the South Alabama athletic director.