VILLANOVA, Pa. (AP) -Three Villanova football players being investigated in a sexual assault case had their admission to the university rescinded Wednesday night.
The incoming freshmen were involved in a campus incident with a female student on July 14, which was reported to Villanova’s public safety department the next day.
“It was a report of forcible rape,” university spokeswoman Liz Kennedy Walsh said.
The three players were asked to leave campus last Friday, and the university decided to kick the students out of school after an investigation.
They were enrolled for one summer class and knew the woman who reported the assault, Walsh said. The alleged victim, whose name has not been released by the school, has not gone to the police, she said.
“Our primary concern has been the welfare of our students and particularly the students who have been involved in this situation,” Villanova athletic director Vince Nicastro said. “We’ve tried to move forward with a great deal of respect for them and we trust that everyone else will do that as well.”
Nicastro said he was informed of the investigation last Wednesday.
A message left for the Radnor police wasn’t immediately returned.
Andy Talley, Villanova’s coach since 1985, said the players had been on campus for about two weeks and had been working out with the rest of the Wildcats.
“There’s somewhat of a bonding going on, but it was really only a two-week bond,” Talley said.
Talley said he talked to all three players to get their side of the story.
“I needed to get as much information as we could,” Talley said.
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