Springville swim coach arrested, accused of touching teens as ‘initiation,’ police say

According to the police booking affidavit, the alleged victims say Fassett, who goes by her maiden name Meyer, touched them in the pubic area underneath their swimsuits as part of an “initiation” hazing ritual and “to establish dominance.”

One victim reported being in the water with Fassett at the time of the alleged abuse and fought to get out of her hold. The victim reported that when she finally broke free and told Fassett to never do it again she “laughed in response and continued coaching.”

During an interview with police, Fassett said she had grabbed her players on their shoulders, arms, back and hip. She also denied “she would ever grab a player at their crotch area, but said it had happened to herself multiple times in her experience of playing water polo,” according to police.

Fassett was the head girl’s swim coach at Springville High School starting in September 2021, and then was hired as the head boys swim coach for Maple Mountain High School in September 2022, according to the Nebo School District. She has also coached programs at the Clyde Recreation Center, where the allegations stem from.

Nebo School District said administrators “became aware of the allegations against her (Fassett) in relation to her position at one of the local municipalities on Jan. 12, and the individual was placed on administrative leave.” After conducting an internal investigation, the district said Fassett was allowed to return to coaching on Jan. 17. Upon hearing of Fassett’s arrest on Feb. 9, the district says it fired her.

“When we conducted our own investigation, we really didn’t find any evidence of wrongdoing in our schools, or anything that had happened in our schools, and the individual was allowed to return to work at that time,” said Seth Sorensen, Public Administrator for the Nebo School District

Police say those who made the reports were as young as 15 years old at the time of the alleged assaults.

“A concern that she is ‘grooming’ some of the juveniles has been expressed by many persons during this investigation,” the affidavit says. “Even though she was fired from her position as the water polo coach, she is still in physical contact with some of the juveniles.”

The Nebo School District says they have no previous reports of misconduct involving Fassett but will continue their investigation. They’re encouraging any other potential victims to contact the Springville Police Department