Coach probed after money goes missing

By Jeremy Herb

The Athletic Department has opened an internal investigation into the disappearance of about $2,800 in raffle funds and team donations after the money -- and the coach -- have gone missing, several sources familiar with the investigation said.

Several cheerleaders, who asked not to be identified because they were told not to speak with the news media, said that cheer coach MaryAnne McHugh stopped attending the team's practices and returning phone calls just prior to the West Coast Conference Tournament last month.

Sources said McHugh received $550 from a raffle following a Feb. 27 basketball game -- money that was supposed to go toward the cheer team's trip to the tournament in Spokane, Wash. And in the fall, 15 cheerleaders each wrote $150 checks to their coach after they were told the money would be used to hire a personal trainer.

But since the end of the cheer season, McHugh has been unreachable, and the team has not been reimbursed for the money, several team members said.

McHugh could not be reached for comment this week because her phone number is not listed, and the Athletic Department declined to give The Santa Clara her contact information.

Part of the Athletic Department's difficulty in contacting her stemmed from a recent job change, as well as a new cell phone number, said John Schuster, manager of marketing and promotions.

Athletic Director Dan Coonan met with the team Tuesday and told cheerleaders they are taking the investigation "seriously," one team member said.

Coonan confirmed the investigation, but declined to comment further for this story.

At this point, the matter is being handled within the university and has not yet been turned over to Santa Clara police, said Lt. Jim Buchanan, a police spokesman.

The ordeal started when the team did not receive a personal trainer and questioned the coach about the issue.

Then, according to several team members, McHugh said that the money was actually for "outstanding balances" -- and not a trainer.

"This is my third year, and I've never heard of any outstanding balances," one cheerleader said. Another team member said it was "possible" that this was the case, but said she didn't think it was likely. She said the only company the team could owe money to is Varsity, their uniform supplier.

But Varsity representative Pam Stilleson, who works with the cheer team, said there have been no problems with their account, but would not further disclose any details.

In February, several members of the team met with Coonan about their coach. The meeting covered the team's finances and the personal trainer, as well as their coach's absences during games and practices. When no coach is present, the team can't legally do stunts.

According to one cheerleader, the Athletic Department then set up a meeting with McHugh, but she did not show.

The department decided not to take the coach to the WCC Tournament, but did not tell her until the week before the tournament. Sources could not say why she was not invited.

At a practice approximately a week before the tournament, she asked some members of the team about travel arrangements, which one cheerleader said made her uncomfortable because she knew her coach wasn't accompanying them.

McHugh didn't attend the team's next practice, and the coach has been unreachable since. According to state databases online, she has not been registered as a missing person.

One cheerleader said that McHugh contacted her after learning she wouldn't be going with the team to Spokane. She said that McHugh felt hurt, and didn't understand why she was being excluded from the trip.

To help the investigation, several cheer squad members said they turned over bank statements, which showed when their checks had been written and cashed.

McHugh was hired as the cheer coach two years ago. She graduated as a cheerleader from Santa Clara in 2002.

The Athletic Department could not confirm if McHugh has been dismissed, though an e-mail sent from one cheer member to the team said they are in the "coach selection process."

Contact Jeremy Herb at (408) 554-4546 or jmherb@scu.edu.