SLIPPERY ROCK — A former scholarship softball pitcher is suing Slippery Rock University, claiming she was discriminated against because of a mental health condition.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court, claims Jenna Frieling felt forced to quit the team after she was first suspended, then her playtime was cut to nothing by coach Vashion Johnson.

The lawsuit alleges the coach told Frieling her mental health condition was "distracting to the team" and a violation of policy.

The lawsuit never identifies what type of mental health condition Frieling, 20, suffers. But it does indicate she has been under the care of a counselor and was never a threat to others.

According to the lawsuit, Frieling, a pitcher from East Amherst, N.Y., had been "heavily recruited" to play at Slippery Rock because she'd played on her high school's varsity team for five years and was expected to be "an instant impact player."

Frieling, identified as a special education major on the university's Internet site, accepted a scholarship to Slippery Rock in 2004, according to the lawsuit.

Within a month of Frieling's return to school for her sophomore year, she was traumatized because her roommate attempted suicide and left school, according to the lawsuit.

That event manifested and aggravated a mental health condition that Frieling was already under treatment for, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit alleges that after that fall's softball season, during a conditioning practice, the team's coach questioned Frieling about her mental health condition in front of three of her teammates and another coach.

The coach reportedly told Frieling that her mental health condition was negatively impacting the team, and it was a violation "of school or team" policy and merited her being disciplined.

According to the lawsuit, the coach then told all of Frieling's teammates about her condition, instructing them to tell their parents about it.

The coach also allegedly suspended Frieling from the team for the remainder of the season.

The suit alleges Frieling was discriminated against and denied due process.