Cougars running back pleads to reduced charge

Washington State running back Kevin McCall reached an agreement to plead guilty for fourth-degree assault with sexual motivation days before his trial on a charge of third-degree rape was set to begin.

McCall pleaded guilty to the new, lesser charge Thursday with the trial scheduled for Monday. Instead, the 19-year-old will have a sentencing hearing Monday in Colfax. Fourth-degree assault is a gross misdemeanor and carries a maximum prison term of one year.

“I can’t say I’m excited about it, but the victim was worn out and didn’t want it to go any further,” Whitman County Chief Deputy Prosecutor Carol LaVerne said Friday confirming the outcome.

As part of the agreement, McCall will provide money for counseling. Defense attorney Tim Esser was out of town Friday and unavailable to comment.

The sophomore has been slated as the Cougars’ primary backup behind senior Jerome Harrison this fall. He has been suspended from all team activities since March, when the incident occurred. It appears likely that the running back will return to the team, but further disciplinary action remains a possibility.

“We’ll discuss it with Kevin to figure out an appropriate punishment,” head coach Bill Doba said.

Delayed return

Defensive tackle Ropati Pitoitua, whose travels to Hawaii caused him to miss a court date last week and have an arrest warrant issued in his name, has had a change in travel plans and will return to Pullman next week.

The soon-to-be sophomore, a returning starter, was arrested on a drunken driving charge May 7 and failed to appear in court as he had promised two days later. The 20-year-old was already in Hawaii on a previously planned trip. He changed his plans after originally being scheduled to be return on May 18.

Doba has said, after speaking to Pitoitua, that the lineman plans to fully cooperate with authorities upon his return.