A lawsuit filed more than a year ago by six former Wisconsin women’s basketball players against ex-head coach Marisa Moseley has been tossed out by a federal judge.
James D. Peterson, a judge on the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin, granted the motion for dismissal on Wednesday, Oct. 7, according to court documents obtained by USA TODAY Sports.
The lawsuit, which lists former players Lexi Duckett, Krystyna Ellew, Mary Ferrito, Tara Stauffacher, Tessa Towers and Tessa Grady as plaintiffs, alleged that they were subject to psychological abuse from Moseley and that the university failed to protect them.
Moseley resigned from Wisconsin after four seasons as head coach in March 2025 citing "personal reasons." The Badgers went
47-75 under her direction, never had a winning record in Big Ten play and never made the NCAA Tournament.
Two months before Moseley was fired, Towers – who now plays at Ball State – went public with her allegations in a post on TikTok where she said she “felt like a lab rat” and that coaches and staff were putting her on “new medications every other week.” At the time, Wisconsin said it was “looking into” those allegations and cared “deeply about the physical and mental well-being of” its student-athletes.
In granting the motion to dismiss the lawsuit, Peterson wrote that the complaint “fails to state a plausible claim for relief under the Constitution, the ADA, or the Rehabilitation Act. The court has also concluded that Duckett and Stauffacher’s claims are barred by the statute of limitations.”
Peterson added that the “allegations show that (Moseley and Wisconsin) did not violate (the players') rights to substantive due process or equal protection or their clearly established rights under the First Amendment” and “the allegations have fundamental defects that would be difficult to fix.”
In the lawsuit, players alleged that Moseley "unconstitutionally toyed with the mental health of her players,” discriminated against them, infringed on their freedom of speech, pressured them to divulge details about their parents and romantic partners, and abused “her position of power by making threats about scholarships and playing time.”
Before being hired at Wisconsin, Moseley was the head coach at Boston University for three seasons, going 12-3 and winning the regular season title in the Patriot League in the COVID-shortned 2020-21 campaign. In 2019, she was named Patriot League Coach of the Year.
Prior to becoming a head coach, Moseley was an assistant at UConn under Geno Auriemma from 2009 through 2018, helping the Huskies win five national championships. UConn only lost 15 games while Moseley was on staff for nine seasons. Moseley also served as a scout for Team USA when they won the Olympic gold medal with Auriemma as head coach in 2012 in London, England.
Following Moseley’s resignation from Wisconsin, the Badgers hired former SEC Coach of the Year Robin Pingeton to lead the program. The Badgers went 16-18 last season.
According to her LinkedIn profile, Moseley is currently out of coaching and working as a self-employed leadership consultant.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Lawsuit by players against Wisconsin and ex-women’s basketball coach is dismissed
