An entire student section was put in the penalty box following a high school hockey game, in which a female goalkeeper was taunted until she cried.
The Armstrong High School River Hawks have reportedly banned students from attending games in Kittanning, Pa., as the result of insulting chants directed at a female student who was in the net for the visiting team. ABC affiliate WTAE in Pittsburgh said River Hawks Head Coach Eddie Germy called his team’s student fans’ behavior “embarrassing” and “pretty disgusting.”
Germy said his squad heard the crowd chanting, but couldn’t process what was happening while the puck was in play. Video posted online indicated the verbal abuse was of a sexual nature.
“During the game, we didn’t know that she was in tears,” the coach said.
According to Germy, some of his players are friends with the goalie who was being targeted.
“After the game (they) went up and they apologized on our behalf,” he said.
Germy called the goalkeeper, who plays for Pennsylvania’s Mars Hockey Club, “a wonderful goalie” and a good person.
“It just shows how tough she really is because she played a heck of a game,” he said.
Students involved in the obscene chants could face disciplinary measures.
