Sand Springs Baseball Coach Suspended After Self-Reported OSSAA Violation

The third-ranked Sand Springs High School baseball team will be without its head coach Bill Hutson who has been suspended for the rest of the season after making a self-admitted scheduling error.

The school announced in a statement Friday that the Sandites overbooked on the number of games played this season and that the team is forfeiting the Jenks district baseball game scheduled for Saturday.

According to the release, Hutson made an ‘honest mistake' by counting a doubleheader with U.S. Grant High School earlier in the season as one game.

In addition, Coach Hutson has been suspended for the first five games of the 2012-13 season.

The Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association allows 22 regular season games and if the Sandites were to play its final two scheduled games of the regular season it would put their total at 23.

By rule, Sand Springs was placed on probation which would have kept them from continuing the season. Instead, Sand Springs filed an appeal to the OSSAA who accepted their self-imposed sanctions allowing the team to continue the season after placing the school on a warning status.

"Coach Hutson is an honest, lifelong, dedicated teacher-coach that feels terrible about the situation," said the schools release. "Honesty, integrity and transparency are core values in our district. We sincerely apologize for this infraction and embarrassment to our students, parents and community."

According to the Sand Springs web site, Hutson has been at Sand Springs for more than 33 years coaching football, golf, softball and baseball.

Sand Springs will play at Jenks Friday night with first pitch scheduled for 6 p.m.