Not even three months after women’s volleyball coach Chelsey Lucas was hired at Grambling State University, she has already made headlines for cutting the entire team.
At first, Lucas was viewed as an accomplished coach by staff, administrators, and alumni. However, public view of Lucas drastically shifted after she cut all 19 players from the roster. After this shocking decision, the Grambling State administration fired her, and they are currently undergoing further investigation behind this alarming event.
Lucas has led multiple teams such as the Arkansas Pine Bluff to victory, compiling an impressive 37-44 record over three seasons.
According to multiple reports, Lucas has always had a tense relationship with the athletes. Some players believe that Lucas remained petty after Grambling State played the Arkansas Pine Bluff, a team previously coached by Lucas.
Describing the intense game, Senior Sheila Borders stated that, “When we played [the Arkansas Pine Bluff] at home and we beat them, our school has like this chant, but at the end of the chant you say, like, the B-word. I guess she thought I was calling them B-words, but, like, the whole school says it. They say it at basketball games and football games. It’s nothing personal.”
During the first meeting with Grambling State players after that game, Lucas reportedly stated: “I bet you didn’t expect to see me again. I bet y’all will think twice about who y’all call a b—-.” In the following weeks, Lucas only held three practice sessions which mostly consisted of punishment-based running instead of conducive volleyball drills.
But the bitterness doesn’t stop there. Grambling State athletes confirmed that Lucas’ previous volleyball players at the University of Arkansas Pine Bluff (UAPB) are transferring to Grambling State.
In April, Lucas held individual meetings where she informed 12 scholarship players that she would not renew their scholarships for the next season. This means that these players will not be able to play volleyball next season and may not have the financial means to continue attending college.
Maurisa Harris, a junior at Grambling who unfortunately lost her scholarship, painstakingly recounts the experience, “When I was in there and she told me, my heart completely broke. … I didn’t cry in there, but I did when I left, and it just hurts really bad, the fact that it was snatched away so fast.”
Grambling State players would not stand for this mistreatment and started a petition to remove Lucas as their coach and called for the administration to renew their scholarships. Fortunately, Grambling State’s Athletic Director Trayvean Scott confirmed that “[a]ll volleyball student-athletes who received scholarships for the 2022-23 academic year will keep their scholarships and remain on the team,” and “[a]alk-ons will also continue to hold their roster spot.”
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At first, Lucas was viewed as an accomplished coach by staff, administrators, and alumni. However, public view of Lucas drastically shifted after she cut all 19 players from the roster. After this shocking decision, the Grambling State administration fired her, and they are currently undergoing further investigation behind this alarming event.
Lucas has led multiple teams such as the Arkansas Pine Bluff to victory, compiling an impressive 37-44 record over three seasons.
According to multiple reports, Lucas has always had a tense relationship with the athletes. Some players believe that Lucas remained petty after Grambling State played the Arkansas Pine Bluff, a team previously coached by Lucas.
Describing the intense game, Senior Sheila Borders stated that, “When we played [the Arkansas Pine Bluff] at home and we beat them, our school has like this chant, but at the end of the chant you say, like, the B-word. I guess she thought I was calling them B-words, but, like, the whole school says it. They say it at basketball games and football games. It’s nothing personal.”
During the first meeting with Grambling State players after that game, Lucas reportedly stated: “I bet you didn’t expect to see me again. I bet y’all will think twice about who y’all call a b—-.” In the following weeks, Lucas only held three practice sessions which mostly consisted of punishment-based running instead of conducive volleyball drills.
But the bitterness doesn’t stop there. Grambling State athletes confirmed that Lucas’ previous volleyball players at the University of Arkansas Pine Bluff (UAPB) are transferring to Grambling State.
In April, Lucas held individual meetings where she informed 12 scholarship players that she would not renew their scholarships for the next season. This means that these players will not be able to play volleyball next season and may not have the financial means to continue attending college.
Maurisa Harris, a junior at Grambling who unfortunately lost her scholarship, painstakingly recounts the experience, “When I was in there and she told me, my heart completely broke. … I didn’t cry in there, but I did when I left, and it just hurts really bad, the fact that it was snatched away so fast.”
Grambling State players would not stand for this mistreatment and started a petition to remove Lucas as their coach and called for the administration to renew their scholarships. Fortunately, Grambling State’s Athletic Director Trayvean Scott confirmed that “[a]ll volleyball student-athletes who received scholarships for the 2022-23 academic year will keep their scholarships and remain on the team,” and “[a]alk-ons will also continue to hold their roster spot.”
Source: https://s3.amazonaws.com/appforest_uf/f1658070605903x665797506476225200/Grambling%20State%20fires%20Chelsey%20Lucas%2C%20volleyball%20coach%20who%20cut%20entire%20team%20-%20The%20Washington%20Post.pdf
