Penn women's lacrosse coach says many allegations are 'unfounded'

Penn women’s lacrosse coach Karin Brower Corbett issued a statement Friday saying “many of the allegations” that team members damaged Fado Irish Pub in Center City on March 29 are “unfounded or are not attributable to members of the Penn Women’s Lacrosse Team.”

Casey Neff, the general manager of Fado Irish Pub, alleged that party attendees at a Penn women’s lacrosse team formal held at the bar behaved badly, stealing alcohol, breaking furniture and smoking marijuana in the bathroom.

Corbett wrote that she investigated the incident and received more information from Neff. The statement did not specify which of the allegations she deemed unfounded based on the investigation.

Corbett declined a request from The Daily Pennsylvanian for an interview for further clarification and members of the lacrosse program were not available for interviews. Neff and the waitstaff at the Fado have also refused multiple requests for an interview after Corbett issued the statement.

Corbett also said that the women’s lacrosse program does not condone any of the alleged misconduct, and she has taken the allegations of wrongdoing seriously. “This week has been a wake up call for all of us,” she wrote. “We hold ourselves to high standards of professionalism, and are deeply disappointed by our players’ poor judgment in holding this event.”

“This has been an important learning moment for our team,” she added.

The statement was sent to Penn women’s lacrosse’s alumnae base, parents of current players and incoming recruits.

In his original email to the University President’s office, the Athletic Director, Coach Corbett and the DP, Neff wrote that he hoped the University would “help me recover damages for both the pub and for my staff.” Neither of the parties involved are willing to discuss if a solution was reached.

Neff did not file a police report because he was unable to single out an individual responsible for the alleged incident. He said DPS contacted him. DPS deferred comment to Associate Vice Provost for University Life Hikaru Kozuma, who said in an email that he was “unable to comment on any situations or incidents that involve our students.”

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