DISTURBING

High School Coach Fired After Violently Yanking Girl’s Ponytail

Jim Zullo, 81, explained that the player cursed at him when he told her to shake hands with the opposing team.

A girl’s high school basketball coach was fired after he violently yanked a student’s ponytail after the team lost a state title game. Jim Zullo, 81, is the head coach of Northville High School in upstate New York. A video showing him grabbing star player Hailey Monroe’s hair and berating her after the game on Friday night quickly went viral. Monroe appeared to be crying after the loss, which was broadcast on television. In the video, another player intervenes and stops Zullo. The school fired Zullo over the incident. In a letter, the school district said in a statement that it was “deeply disturbed” by what happened. ”We assure the public that this matter is being taken extremely seriously, and the District is actively addressing it," the statement said. “The District will be following up with the affected players and their families to provide support and outline the actions we are taking in response to this incident.” Zullo told NEWS10 ABC that Monroe had cursed at him when he told her to shake hands with the opposing team, leading him to react.