Seven suspended student-athletes will be eligible to compete and practice next week after serving 30-day suspensions for testing positive for banned substances, according to a report released by Ball State University.
A total of 17 athletes have violated the Department of Intercollegiate Athletics alcohol and drug policy this school year, according to a report obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request.
This is the first year the athletic department has actively tested athletes, associate athletics director and senior woman's administrator Nona Richardson said.
"We're just trying to be a little more proactive," she said.
This semester, the department has suspended 12 athletes for violating the university's alcohol and drug policy, more than double the number that was suspended last semester, according to the report.
Richardson said she did not know how many athletes were tested overall or on the March 1 tests.
The policy was shared with coaches and athletes at the beginning of the school year, Richardson said. Athletes are eligible to be tested at any time, whether in season or not, she said. There are more than 400 athletes in the department.
There were four suspensions for alcohol related offenses and one for a banned substance between Jan. 19 and Feb. 9. During Fall Semester five violations occurred between Sept. 12 and Nov. 21, two involving alcohol, two involving banned substances and one involving a refusal to test.
Richardson said the university does not actively test for alcohol. Instead, it uses arrests and police citations to determine alcohol-related offenses.
Two of the 17 violations were second offenses, while the rest were first-time offenses, the report said.
The director of intercollegiate athletics determines the length of the athlete's suspension, which for a first offense is not to exceed 30 days, according to the athletics department's alcohol and drug policy. A second offense suspension is not to exceed 90 days. All athletes in violation served or are serving the maximum suspension.
Names of the athletes who tested positive and the teams that were affected were not released because of confidentiality. Currently Todd Chamberlain of the men's volleyball team is serving a 30-day suspension that began after the Cardinals' game March 3. However, coach Joel Walton said he was not allowed to comment about the nature of the suspension.
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