Missouri basketball players pour urine into opponents' water cooler

"This may be the worst act of bad sportsmanship ever!" That quote came directly from my boss, Frank Viverito, president of the St. Louis Sports Commission. I had just returned from a meeting Monday afternoon and Frank's facial expression was somewhere between outrage, disgust and sadness.

He wouldn't tell me what the act was. Frank only said he emailed me the story and I just had to read it to get the full effect. I was a little skeptical. In four years of writing this blog and nearly six years on the job, I've seen some pretty bad stuff. Adults have attacked kids. One time a bunch of coaches set their kids' trophies on fire. There's even a story about a group of kids beating up referees.

All that said, the boss may very well be right. Cassville (Mo.) High School hosted Monett (Mo.) High in a girls basketball game on Feb. 4. Last week, Monett's administration sent a letter home to parents describing a most disturbing incident. The letter states that four Cassville players each urinated into a cup, then poured the fluid from one of the cups into Monett's team water cooler.

According to reports, Monett players did drink from the tainted water cooler during the game. Monett officials also wrote in the letter to parents that they did not learn of the prank until March 20. The letter went on to state that the Cassville players had been disciplined and this was confirmed by a statement released by Cassville administrators as well.

Monett officials went on to say they had been in contact with infectious disease specialists and implored parents to exercise restraint and not to attempt any form of retaliation against Cassville. Details beyond this are vague as both school districts are bound by law to protect the privacy of their minor students regardless of the situation.

Pranks are nothing new in high school. Shaving cream, whipped cream, eggs, toilet paper and any number of other items have been used in high school pranks probably since there's been high school. This goes beyond just a prank. Urine is human waste and can spread disease if ingested. Several kids were put at-risk. Our kids have to learn that rivals are our opponents - not our enemies.

I have contacted the superintendents of both Cassville and Monett to see if there is something the Sportsmanship Initiative can do to help. At the time of this post, neither district has responded. No matter who the rival is, sporting events should always be safe environments for kids.

The actions of the Cassville players made the environment unsafe. Let's be sure our kids know what's appropriate and what's not in the contexts of sport and life.