Complaints against Penn High School coach emerge as social media video circulates

 

ST. JOSEPH COUNTY, Ind.-- A video circulating social media caused uproar in the Penn High School community. Now, a coach is no longer with the team while the school looks into the matter.

Since the video led to an investigation, it also led to former volleyball players coming forward with allegations of mental abuse, with some saying the head coach made them quit the team.

A cell phone video showed a Penn High School player dancing on the sidelines during a volleyball match, wearing part of a costume. Coach Lisa Pawlik is then seen grabbing at the hat and the student’s jersey, jerking her backward.

The controversy brought some former Penn athletes, like Riley Niedbalski, to allege they quit the team because of the head coach. 

“I was being mentally and physically and emotionally abused by the head coach,” Niedbalski alleged. “She made me play on my back, even when it was hurt. And she would force players to play even though they were hurt.”

While some parents believe the video was taken out of context, Penn graduate and former player Taylor Hostetler said issues with Coach Pawlik were common.

“She saw food as something that was taking away our energy rather than fueling us,” Hostetler said. “She blamed losses on players.”

Hostetler said the environment became “draining” for the players.

Niedbalski said there were instances during summer workouts when the coach would deny the athletes water, saying they didn’t need it.

One parent of a Penn graduate and former player, Samantha Caggiano, said her daughter was also pressured to play on an injury.

“You don’t go against what a doctor has told somebody with an injury to do.”

Caggiano, Niedbalski, and Hostetler all individually brought up one incident that they agree was inappropriate. Allegedly, after a loss last year, Pawlik kept the players in the locker room past midnight to lecture them on the loss.

Caggiano accused Pawlik of blaming her daughter for the loss, saying she wasn’t practicing hard enough due to '‘soreness.’'  

“You don’t blame a game on someone who’s injured,” Caggiano said, “and you don’t call an injury ‘sore,’ there’s a difference.”

She says after bringing complaints forward last year, the school did not act.

ABC57 had a crew at Thursday night’s game, but no parents agreed to speak on camera.

Some, however, said they feel the news coverage is unwarranted and unfair.

That said, allegations from other players and parents, many declining an on-camera interview, still poured in to the ABC57 newsroom.

“I quit Penn volleyball, and volleyball altogether because Coach Pawlik took my love for the game away,” said Penn junior, Adri Bush. “After the critical coaching, almost crying because she pushed us too hard, and being scared to approach her if I had a question, I was officially done. I can proudly say that most, if not all, of my teammates that quit Penn volleyball quit because she stripped our love for the game away.”

ABC57 tried reaching out to Coach Pawlik for comment.

The Penn Harris Madison school district released the following statement on Friday:

Penn-Harris-Madison and Penn High School administration were made aware of a video taken at a volleyball game on Tuesday, October 4.

Student safety is our top priority. All matters involving student safety are taken seriously.

Pending the outcome of a thorough independent investigation, P-H-M administration has suspended Coach Lisa Pawlik from coaching the Penn High School volleyball team.