Keith Carter: Allegations against Ole Miss Softball Program “Unfounded” – The Oxford Eagle

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Ole Miss athletic director Keith Carter released a statement on Wednesday regarding the Title IX investigation into the allegations made against the softball program, calling them unfounded.

Head coach Jamie Trachsel and assistant coach Katie Rietkovich Browder were under investigation following an allegation that Browder and a player on the team were in some kind of relationship.

Running Poles, a podcast and website that covers softball, first reported the investigation after obtaining a letter sent to Carter describing the alleged relationship between the coach and an anonymous player.

“Following a thorough investigation by the University’s Title IX office, the anonymous allegations of inappropriate behavior by softball staff are unfounded,” Carter said. In addition, other anonymous allegations involving the culture of the softball program have been carefully reviewed by athletic compliance staff and have been determined to not violate any policy. The well-being and experience of our student-athletes will always be our top priority, and through this in-depth review, we have discussed these anonymous claims with our players and all of them were unfounded.

“Coach Trachsel and her staff are committed to creating a healthy program and strive to resolve any issues to ensure a positive team environment. The staff have our full support and we look forward to continuing our journey as one of the rising softball teams in the sport. It has been an emotional test for our coaches and student-athletes, and we will help them move forward on this issue. “

The letter also alleged that once Trachsel found out about the relationship, she got involved and tried to cover it up by attempting to bribe players with scholarship money.

An anonymous gamer took screenshots of text messages between his girlfriend and Browder, printed the screenshots, and then saved them to Trachsel’s desktop, according to the report.

On Wednesday, Trachsel also released a statement regarding the investigation.

“We would like to express our sincere thanks and gratitude to the leadership of our university for thoroughly considering this matter and reaching a conclusion,” said Trachsel. “The outpouring of support from family, friends, staff, colleagues and current and former student-athletes has not only been overwhelming, but has given us courage and strength through this situation. It has been an emotional time for our entire program, but I have no doubt that our coaches and players will grow stronger together as we go through this shared experience. We look forward to putting that behind us as a team as we continue to develop our championship culture and compete for more titles here at Ole Miss.

Trachsel is entering his second year at Ole Miss. In the 2021 season, the Rebels went 36-22, 12-12 in conference and reached the NCAA softball tournament, playing in the Tucson Regional.

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