General | 5/31/2019 12:39:00 PM

    WEST LIBERTY, W.Va. – West Liberty University has accepted athletic program penalties imposed by the NCAA for self-reported violations involving the university's former head men's soccer coach during the 2018 season.
    "While West Liberty University is extremely disappointed by the conduct of our former men's soccer coach, we are pleased by the professional manner in which this situation was managed," WLU President Dr. Stephen Greiner said. "The university took swift and decisive action to immediately address the issue when it came to our attention and we have developed and implemented specific policies to further enhance our compliance procedures."
    According to the decision issued by the NCAA Division II Committee on Infractions (COI), former head coach Thomas Olivier failed to promote an atmosphere of compliance in his program and violated NCAA ethical conduct rules when he made tuition payments for two student-athletes. In addition, the COI found that he provided false and misleading information during the investigation.
    The COI noted that WLU quickly detected one of the impermissible tuition payments and took immediate action by withholding the involved student-athlete from competition, initiating an investigation and submitting a self-report. The COI also considered West Liberty's cooperation during the infractions process and its corrective actions in concluding that the cooperation exhibited by WLU met its obligation under the bylaws.
    "I want to praise (NCAA Compliance Coordinator) Brad Forshey for his competence and professionalism in leading the investigative process," WLU athletic director Lynn Ullom said. "I also want to express my appreciation to the Mountain East Conference and the NCAA for their support and direction in helping us conduct a complete and thorough investigation."
    The penalties imposed by the COI include a one-year probation, a two-year show-cause order for the former head coach, vacating all wins and ties in which the ineligible student-athlete participated and a self-imposed reduction of one scholarship from the men's soccer program over the next two seasons. The terms of probation do not impact potential eligibility for postseason play.
    This case was resolved through cooperative summary disposition, a process where the involved parties collectively submit the case to the committee in written form.
    Here are links to the story on the NCAA website and the full Public Infractions Report, which were released by the NCAA on May 31.
    Official NCAA release: Former West Liberty Men's Soccer Coach Committed NCAA Violations
    Full Report: May 2019 West Liberty University Public Infractions Decision