Baseball Team At Calif. Community College Investigated After 2 Claims Of Rape By Players

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) _ Authorities are investigating a woman's claim that she was sexually assaulted in December by community college baseball players at a house where police said a 17-year-old girl

Tuesday, April 10th 2007, 5:07 pm

By: News On 6

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) _ Authorities are investigating a woman's claim that she was sexually assaulted in December by community college baseball players at a house where police said a 17-year-old girl was raped during a party in March.

Sgt. Ed Wise, spokesman for the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office, confirmed the new claim. He also said investigators took DNA samples from an unspecified number of partygoers in March, including some De Anza College players, but he declined further comment.

Authorities began investigating the athletes and some other students at the community college in Cupertino, a quiet San Jose suburb, after the teenager claimed she was raped last month at a player's birthday party.

No one has been charged in either case, and prosecutors have declined to comment.

Eight players were suspended from the team for violations of the athletics department ethics code, school spokeswoman Marissa Spatafore said. She would not identify them.

The team canceled three games after the teen's allegations surfaced last month but has resumed playing.

One witness told KNTV that at least 10 people watched and cheered while two players had sex with the 17-year-old girl in a side room, and that members of De Anza women's soccer team took the girl to the hospital. Staff at the hospital alerted authorities.