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Franklin tennis player disqualified for refusing match on Sabbath

Franklin’s Stefan Mangroo, doubles partner may be out of tournament.

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By Rick McCrabb, Staff Writer Updated 2:54 AM Tuesday, May 18, 2010

FRANKLIN — Stefan Mangroo’s religion comes first.

“You have to stand up for what you believe,” the Franklin High School junior said Monday, May 17.

So when Mangroo, 17, and his tennis partner, senior Cody Buffenbarger, were scheduled to play Saturday, May 15, in the semifinals of the Division II sectional tournament, Mangroo refused to play on the Sabbath for Seventh-Day Adventists.

“It’s the Lord’s day,” said Mangroo, a member of the Centerville Seventh-Day Adventist Church who’s permitted to do only “biblical things” on Saturdays.

When he didn’t show up at the tennis court, Mangroo and Buffenbarger were disqualified from the tournament, even though there were four teams and all four teams were set to advance to this week’s districts.

Buffenbarger’s mother, Lisa Hart, called the semifinals only a “seeding” tournament since all four teams had advanced to the next round.

New Richmond, which Franklin beat 6-1, 6-1, will advance in its place if the ruling made by the Ohio High School Athletic Association stands.

A final decision may be made today, but as of now, the Franklin team has been disqualified, said Roxanne Price, assistant commissioner of the OHSAA.

Price said the rule, No. 13, assures that teams “participate” and don’t forfeit their matches.

Price said the state can’t adjust its tournament schedule based on students’ obligations, such as proms, graduation, school field trips and Advanced Placement tests.

If the doubles team had showed up, and lied about an injury, they would have lost the match, but advanced to the next level, everyone agreed.

Franklin tennis coach Jeff York said he “admired” Mangroo for sticking to his religious beliefs.

Mangroo said the state “can’t discriminate against religion.”

Rodney Roberts, Franklin athletic director, called the dispute “a situation, not a controversy.” He said the district was “exploring our options” as far as challenging the state’s decision.

He said Franklin has an “obligation” to represent its student-athletes.

“This is not a battle,” he said. “We just want to exhaust all our options.”

He said the school “fully understands” the rules and regulations, but he believes since Mangroo’s decision was based entirely on his religion, “it’s a little different.”

Then he added: “It’s a tough pill to swallow.”

Contact this reporter at (513) 705-2842 or rmccrabb@coxohio.com.

What does the OHSAA rule say?

Rule 13 of the Ohio High School Athletic Association 2010 boys tennis tournament regulations reads: “A player who voluntarily defaults a match, other than for injury or illness, shall be disqualified from further OHSAA tournament participation that year and is not eligible to receive an OHSAA tournament award. (for example) A singles player who is not physically present at a tournament cannot advance to the next level of the tournament.

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