CORVALLIS, Ore. -- Oregon State has banned a fan for two women's home games because of derogatory comments directed toward a USC player following a women's game on Feb. 18
Sophomore guard Minyon Moore said that fans at Gill Coliseum had directed racial slurs at her and her teammates. She posted about the incident on Twitter after the game but quickly deleted the posts.
Oregon State's Office of Equal Opportunity and Access investigated the incident, interviewing USC players, the fan, other fans seated in the area, and coaches and administrators from both schools. The school reviewed Pac-12 audio of the game.
The investigation did not "discover the location of any fans using racially derogatory statements directed at USC student-athletes or the team," Steve Clark, Oregon State's vice president for university relations and marketing, said in a statement.
But it did identify one fan who continuously directed taunts and personally derogatory statements at a USC player.
“We apologize once more to this USC player for what she heard. We also apologize to her teammates, coaches and the University of Southern California. We greatly regret this incident and our finding that a fan targeted a USC player with taunts. The behavior does not represent this university’s values for inclusivity, success and safety for all, nor does it represent OSU’s longstanding athletics history of fair play and great competition.”
Oregon State won the game, 69-63.
Scott Barnes, vice president and director of OSU athletics, addressed the discipline in a letter to Oregon State ticketholders and other stakeholders on Monday.
"The university's investigation found that the comments made by this particular fan were not of a racially derogatory nature. Yet, this individual's conduct during the game and comments taunting a specific opposing player are inconsistent with the standards of appropriate behavior that we expect and require from our fans in providing a great homecourt advantage for our teams, while also respecting our opponents and game officials," the letter said.
The Beavers, currently ranked No. 10, play in the Pac-12 women's tournament this weekend in Seattle. Seeded third, Oregon State has a first-round bye and will face the winner of Thursday's game between Arizona and Arizona State.
There is the possibility that the Beavers could host first-round NCAA Tournament games.
