The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, April 19, 2006, Page 18, Image 18
Rape suspects took expensive road to Durham
Frank Cltman
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
GARDEN CITY, N.Y. — They
grew up in privileged
surroundings in the suburbs
of New York City.
Collin Finnerty of Long
Island and Reade Seligmann
of New Jersey both come
from a world of golf
courses and multimillion
dollar homes and were
educated at exclusive all
boys Catholic prep schools.
Their paths merged after
the high school lacrosse
stars won admission to
Duke University, and
continued their athletic and
academic careers.
On Tuesday, they stood
as co-defendants, accused of
raping a stripper at an off
campus party in Durham,
m r
Defenders quickly came
forward at both of their
high schools. Finnerty, 19,
was described as a good
student and athlete who was
never in any trouble, while
20-year-old Seligmann
was remembered as a kid
incapable of committing
such a heinous act.
“Knowing Reade
Seligmann as well as we
do here at Delbarton, I
believe him innocent of
the charges,” said the
Rev. Luke L. Travers,
headmaster at Seligmann’s
$22,500-a-year high school.
“The hearts and prayers
of our community go out
to Reade and his family,
the woman who made the
accusations, the players on
the Duke lacrosse team and
all their families.”
At Chaminade High
School on Long Island,
where Finnerty was among
the 1,600 students, his
former lacrosse coach said
the young man “really
was never in any trouble.
Basically, more of a quiet
kid.”
Jack Moran, the
Chaminade lacrosse coach
for 28 years, recalled
Finnerty as an A student
and a good teammate.
“Collin obviously was
a very good player,”
Moran said before practice
Tuesday.
“He was good enough
to play at Duke. He was a
good student. ... Obviously,
a good enough student to
qualify academically for
Duke.”
An education at
Chaminade cost $6,670
a year in regular tuition,
while students in the
elite collegiate program
paid more than $23,000
annually.
According to court
documents, Finnerty was
arrested six months ago in
Washington, D.C., after
an alleged gay-bashing
incident. Jeffrey Bloxgom
said Finnerty and two of
his high school teammates
hurled anti-gay insults and
punched him repeatedly.
Finnerty entered a
diversion program, under
which the charges will
be dismissed after the
completion of 25 hours
of community service.
Hearings in the case
are scheduled for April
25 and Sept. 25, said a
spokeswoman for the
U.S. Attorney’s Office in
Washington.
Both defendants
graduated from high school
in 2004.
There were other
similarities in their
upbringings.
Finnerty hails from
Garden City, N.Y., and
lived in a Dutch colonial
house on a cul-de-sac. A
lacrosse net and equipment
were visible in the yard,
which abuts a golf course.
No one answered the
door at the Finnerty home
Tuesday morning.
Seligmann grew up in
well-to-do Essex Fells,
N.J., where multimillion
dollar homes also abound
and the current mayor
grew up with the lacrosse
player’s dad.
Birthday boy
Nick Bares / THE GAMECOCK
USC football coach Steve Spurrier, shown during last week’s Clemson game, will
turn 61 years old Thursday. Spurrier is entering his second year as head coach.
CITADEL • COnTMUCDFROmn
play with more maturity and
poise than their age.”
Poise is what the team
will need after losing
Sunday’s final series game to
Mississippi and then facing
Kentucky on the road for a
three-game series on Friday
after the Bulldogs.
The Citadel is 18-18
overall, but only 4-8 in
the Southern Conference
this season. They beat No.
3 Nebraska on Feb. 18 at
home, but are 1-3 against
ranked opponents.
The Gamecocks have
struggled in their past 10
games at 5-5, but are 29-8
overall and lead the SEC.
They also boast the nation’s
highest fielding percentage
at .988 with only 17 errors
in 37 games.
“I wish we were
undefeated now, but things
aren’t perfect and I can’t
complain,” Tanner said.
USC is the fifth
nationally-ranked team the
Citadel has faced this season.
Against such competition,
the Bulldogs have gone 1
3, losing to Winthrop once
and N.C. State twice, while
knocking off Nebraska in
February when it was No. 3
nationally.
The Citadel is having
a tough April, going 4-6
thus far with a series loss
to Furman and a three
game sweep at the hands
of Elon this past weekend. > A
It will be the Citadel’s fifth
consecutive game on the
road.
If the Gamecocks wish
to take advantage of that
potential fatigue, they’ll have
to shut down left fielder
Chris Swauger. During the
Elon series, Swauger went
six-of-11 and drove in three
RBI, bumping his team-best
batting average to .369.
The sophomore from
Tampa, Fla., has proved
to be an ironman this
season, starting all 36 of
the Citadel’s games. He 4 I
has 52 hits, 32 RBI, five
homers and a .652 slugging
percentage — all are tops on
the team.
Junior lefty Zach Brown
is scheduled to take the
mound for the Bulldogs
against fellow southpaw
Atwood for USC. Brown,
a Greenville native, is 1 -
3 with a 5.60 ERA on the
year,
The two teams play the
second game of the series
on May 9 at Riley Park at
7pm;_«>
Comments on this story? E-mail
gamecocksports@gurm.sc. edu
FRSTennu • connnueD momn
else to decorate his office.
I’m thinking a talking Philip
Fulmer bobble-belly doll.
I’m not sure if they make
these, but I’m sure one
could be found on eBay. It
could be useful during long
film sessions. When the old
ball coach gets bored or
frustrated, he can just poke
Fulmer’s belly and the doll
will coo and say something
nice. That may be one of
the most ridiculous things
I’ve ever written.
Why not another SEC
championship ring? Sure
it’d be a stretch, but it was
unthinkable last season and
came kind of close to being
a reality. Let’s add it to the
list. Rice can do his part by
having a Heisman-winning
season; Boyd can run
through defenses on his way
to the Doak Walker Award;
and Mitchell can grow out *
a full Taneyhill mullet. Of "
course, if it doesn’t happen,
SEC championship rings
can probably also be found
on eBay.
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