Former Xavier University assistant women's basketball coach Bryce McKey has resigned from a similar position with the University of Maryland in the wake of being accused of sexually abusing an XU player.
"It is best that Bryce tend to his personal matters and step away from coaching at this time," Maryland coach Brenda Frese said in a statement released Friday afternoon.
McKey, 29, was scheduled to be arraigned in Kenton County District Court on Friday morning, but he was a no-show. Instead, an attorney stood in for McKey, and Judge Douglas Grothaus re-scheduled the arraignment hearing for Sept. 8.
The judge ordered McKey to stay away from the woman who accused him of inappropriately touching her this past spring and not to contact her. McKey is not to come within 500 feet of the woman, nor is the former coach allowed to visit Xavier's campus or attend any XU events, Grothaus ordered.
The woman's Akron-based attorney, Walter Madison, and family members were in attendance at the Covington courtroom on Friday.
The Enquirer is not naming the woman who brought the complaint because she may have been the victim of a sex crime.
As The Enquirer first reported Thursday night, McKey has been accused of inappropriately touching the 20-year-old Xavier player at the ex-coach's Covington home on May 2, according to court records. Authorities are seeking a charge of misdemeanor sexual abuse, punishable by up to 90 days in jail and a $250 fine.
Maryland hired McKey on April 22 after he had spent the previous four seasons on Xavier's coaching staff. The alleged incident occurred after McKey was no longer employed at Xavier, a university attorney told The Enquirer on Thursday. It's believed the incident occurred just before McKey moved from Greater Cincinnati to Maryland.
The player, who remains on Xavier's basketball team, alleges that McKey asked her to come to his Covington residence, according to a complaint. After the player arrived at McKey's residence, he "offered her alcohol and after a few drinks, he touched her buttocks on two occasions without her permission," according to the complaint.
While she was leaving, McKey asked for a hug and "pulled her close to him and she felt he was trying to kiss her at which time she pushed him away and left the residence," according to the complaint.
In the days following the incident, court records say, McKey contacted the woman through a mutual friend and offered money in exchange for not pursuing charges.
Enquirer reporter Henry Molski contributed.
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