Tusculum College Soccer Controversy Continues

September 27, 2006 (Press Release) -- After the school's soccer alumni placed full page advertisments in the local paper, a response article from the college's President Dr. Dolphus E. Henry has ignited a firestorm of controversy. According to reports, the players involved in the theft of money from a NASCAR fundraising event have gone unpunished and the coaches tendered their resignations. The soccer alumni claims in a blog that the men's head soccer coach Tony Castainca, in his 17th season at the school, and assistant coach Louis Thorpe were forced to resign for other reasons. The Greeneville Sun published Dr. Henry's response to the alumni advertisement and Coach Castainca followed. “I would be the first to applaud President Henry,” Castainca said in the written response, “had he achieved his goal of fully disclosing the relevant facts for the sake of public understanding; however, a number of the ‘facts’ are simply wrong, and I have documentation as proof of such. I feel most offended by the statement regarding amnesty.” Castainca accumulated a 203-107-21 record and was named South Atlantic Conference Coach of the Year five times. The Pioneers, ranked No. 22 in the NSCAA/adidas NCAA Division preseason poll, returned 17 lettermen from last year's squad that had a 11-7-1 record while advancing to the NCAA D2 Tournament for a second straight year.

The school's soccer alumni have established a blog at http://fireed.blogspot.com

The Presbyterian-affiliated NCAA Division II school is in Greeneville, about 65 miles northeast of Knoxville.