LANCASTER, Texas — The parents of two Lancaster High School seniors said Thursday they plan to appeal a decision by a group of local school administrators suspending their daughters from the basketball team after determining they transferred to the school to play athletics, a violation of UIL rules.
Kaylinn Kemp and Kenidi Glover are among four students Duncanville ISD said transferred to Lancaster this season after the Lady Tigers hired Duncanville's former girls' basketball coach.
WFAA is naming the students with their parents' permission.
The district said Thursday the UIL decision was "unfortunate" and said it was supporting the students and families "during this difficult time."
Both families deny they moved to Lancaster to play basketball. "She doesn't choose where she lives," said Jerome Glover. "I didn’t see any problems because they say you supposed to play in the district you live in."
The Glover parents said they moved to Lancaster to mend their relationship. "Once we got back together, our entire family moved here," explained Lasonya Glover.
The parents of Kaylinn Kemp said they moved to Lancaster to make ends meet. "As parents, we made the best decision for Kaylinn and there’s no other way to get around it, that’s what it was," said Crystal Blackmon, Kaylinn's mom.
Both families expressed frustration that the district committee found they were in violation of the UIL rules, despite their explanations.
"It’s heartbreaking. Especially for your kid," said Luron Kemp, Kaylinn's father. "It’s something that they love, they desire to do and they do it at a high level. It’s a hurtful feeling."
The former Duncanville coach, who now leads the Lancaster team, faced a previous suspension for UIL violations -- including recruiting violations -- but told the committee that didn't happen here.
"I have learned from my mistake. I've done nothing illegal," LaJenna Howard said Wednesday.
But the committee found they broke the rules nonetheless. In a unanimous vote of 4-0, they suspended both students from varsity athletics for one year — essentially ending the seniors' high school career.
WFAA asked the committee for comment immediately following the transfer hearing, but they declined.
Both families said they plan to appeal. "It’s within our right of what happened and it’s something that we have to do," explained Lasonya Glover.