A 22-year-old assistant coach for a Virginia high school basketball team no longer works for the school after impersonating a 13-year-old girl and playing in one of the team’s games, according to local news outlets.
WAVY TV 10 reported that Arlisha Boykins impersonated a player on the Churchland JV girls’ basketball team – the Truckers – during a Jan. 21 game in Suffolk, Va., against Nansemond River. Video obtained by the outlet shows Boykins wearing a #1 jersey for Churchland, which is located in Portsmouth, Va.
Parents of the girl who usually wears the jersey told WAVY Sports Director Craig Loper that the student athlete was out of town at a club basketball tournament during the Churchland-Nansemond River game.
“The JV head coach, along with the head coach of the varsity girls basketball team, have both been fired, 10 On Your Side has learned,” said the outlet. WAVY confirmed that Boykins’ last day of employment was Jan. 25.
WTKR News 3 said the Portsmouth Public Schools system confirmed that Boykins played in the game, which Churchland ultimately forfeited. According to the outlet, the school system said no Churchland administrators attended the game in Suffolk and Boykins conduct was reported to the Virginia High School League.
“Coaches always preach to the kids about integrity and those types of things, so I was just shocked,” the father of the 13-year-old player Boykins impersonated said, according to WAVY.
Sources also told 10 On Your Side that the varsity coach was “encouraging the behavior” during the game. After learning about the incident, school administrators reportedly met with members of both the JV and varsity teams.
“During the meeting, players of both teams said they did not want to continue the season,” said WTKR. Student players and their parents chose to opt out of the remainder of the season, said WAVY. Portsmouth Public Schools Public Information Officer Lauren Nolasco confirmed that players decided not to continue their seasons, according to USA TODAY Sports.
Additionally, the family told WAVY their daughter is not interested in attending Churchland High School next year. Her family is seeking an apology from the school division, which has launched an investigation into the incident.
“When an adult commits to being a high school coach, it’s not just about coaching the game. They take on a lot of responsibility. Adults who fail to live up to those expectations – I’ll just put it bluntly - they fail students,” said Billy Haun, the executive director of the Virginia High School League, according to WTKR.
Haun said this isn’t the first time he’s heard of this type of thing happening in Virginia.
“We failed kids because we’ve got a group of young ladies who will now not be able to finish their season because of the behavior of some adults,” he said.
WTKR attempted to reach out to Boykins for comment. She had not responded as of early Tuesday evening.
Last month, a 29-year-old woman also faced consequences for allegedly attempting to impersonate a teen. According to an Audacy report, “New Jersey woman Hyejeong Shin was charged with one count of providing a false government document in an alleged scheme to go to high school as a teenager.”
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