Five Page softball players suspended

WINDOW ROCK

Five varsity members of the Page softball team have been suspended as of Thursday morning.

That’s according to an email sent to the parents of the suspended players from Leigh Guenther, the high school principal.

In a phone interview with Christina Gamble, the mother of starting pitcher Grace Jump, the suspension stems from Monday’s protest when the team was headed to Kayenta to play the Monument Valley Lady Mustangs for a 3A North Region game.

“The five girls were suspended because of our protest,” Gamble said. “There were other parents standing there with us, and why are their kids not being suspended?

“He’s picking and choosing, and he’s retaliating against us parents,” she said of Guenther. “My daughter is really upset, and she’s crying.”

Gamble said she tried reaching out to Page Unified School District Superintendent Bryce Anderson on Thursday but was told he was in a meeting.

“Apparently, he’s busy, and so is Nancy Warner,” she said.

Warner serves as the school district’s director of talent management (human resources).

“I’m not being heard right now,” Gamble said, although Guenther did call her Thursday morning.

Page Athletic Director Megan Moore confirmed the suspension of five softball players in an email to the Navajo Times. She said they were suspended for violating the Parent/Family/Guardian Code of Conduct.

“As it relates to the district’s investigation, personnel matters are confidential,” Moore said.

The suspension, the AD said, included last night’s game at Northland Prep in Flagstaff and Saturday’s 3A North Region tournament.

According to Gamble, the players suspended include Janelle Etsitty, Miakoda Whitehorse, Cyra Manson, Alysa Manson, and Jump.

The protest on Monday involved then head coach Sunni Crank, who resigned on Tuesday after receiving backlash from an incident that happened on April 13 during practice.

Before the team was to depart to Kayenta, the parents and team members met with Guenther, and after that meeting, some of the parents refused to let their child get on the bus with Crank ready to coach the team.

A compromise was finally reached when Crank removed herself as assistant coach Sylvester Begay took the team to Kayenta. According to Moore, Begay will serve the remainder of the year as the interim coach.

As for the incident on April 13, a handful of parents and players were outraged with how PHS employee Justin Burnham, a guest of Crank, treated them.

Burnham allegedly made derogatory remarks to some team members.

“(She) allowed this man to blatantly disrespect, degrade, taunt our varsity softball players while they practiced,” Judy Edsitty stated in an email to Warner.

“He made derogatory remarks to break the girls’ spirit, confidence, pride, emotions by saying hurtful things with harassing, hazing, and bullying intentions!” exclaimed Edsitty, whose daughter was suspended.

Another parent, Valerie June, said Crank encouraged Burnham to keep making comments to the softball girls while they were working on batting practice.

“Mr. Burnham shouted vulgar obscenities to the girls who were hitting,” June said. “Head coach Sunni Crank allowed and gave Justin Burnham permission to observe and heckle the varsity softball players.”

Patricia Miller said the comments made by Burnham made her daughter, Calena Miller, really upset. Afterward, she sent a group text asking why he was there.

“My daughter was the first one to react, and she posted on the group text asking why Sunni let that guy come in and talk ‘s*** to us,’” Miller said. “With him saying that didn’t help because my daughter’s self-confidence got down.

“I’m against it with what happened, but I’m happy and glad that my daughter stepped up and said what she had to say in that group text,” she added.

Gamble said her daughter overheard some of Burnham’s comments to the other girls.

“The only comment he made to Grace is that he told her that she was built like a seventh grader,” she said. “That is what he told her, and he was jabbing jokes at her hitting.

“What I’m standing up for is what he said to the other girls that Grace said,” she added. “I’m doing this because I’m supporting the other girls because it’s supposed to be a team. If one person is struggling, the team should be there supporting her.”

Instead, Gamble feels a divide among the team members, with a handful of players and their parents supporting the former coach.

“Apparently this has become a white-brown issue,” she said. “All the white parents are upset, and it’s getting worse. It’s just escalating at this point.

“That’s my opinion, and that is how I see it,” she added.

In the email sent from Guenther, Gamble said the suspended players are not allowed at practices or any of the games.

In addition, she’s worried about the repercussions of the suspension.

“We have two girls that have college potential, and we don’t know if it’s gonna hurt them,” she said.

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