BURKE, Va. -- Sixteen members of Lake Braddock Secondary School's girls soccer team were accused of attending a party where some people allegedly engaged in underage drinking, sources said.
The party was held at one of the players' homes after a game earlier this month, sources said.
Sources tell News4 the party has become an annual tradition for the team.
"It was a get together they always have for varsity girls' soccer," boys' soccer team member Jorge Fraga told News4. "It's become a tradition over the years. Alcohol just happened to come in."
After winning five state titles, two in the last three years, the Lady Bruins are a well-known soccer powerhouse. Among the team's alumni: soccer pro Mia Hamm.
Though the 16 players didn't necessarily drink alcohol, all who attended the party were suspended, sources said. They had signed a participation policy pledging to adhere to a certain code of conduct, school officials said.
"The participation policy addresses all sorts of different behaviors and potential violation or students who engage in those behaviors, and it goes into things like attendance … and just your general behaviors of what would be acceptable behavior of any student, but we hold our athletes to a little bit higher standard," Fairfax County Schools Athletic Director Bill Curran said.
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"It's kind of disappointing, because the football team had the same incidents during the football season," boys' soccer team member Saman Fakhriyadi said. "These girls are working so hard, won [the state title] two years in a row, coming back, and the entire season has gone down the drain."
Some of the players face up to 30 days of suspension.
