Umpire ejects entire crowd during baseball game

[June 15, 2009]  WEST BURLINGTON, Iowa (AP) -- An umpire emptied the stands at a high school baseball game, ejecting the entire crowd of more than 100 fans for being unruly.

Umpire Don Briggs said he had no problem with any of the student athletes during Thursday's game between Winfield-Mount Union and West Burlington. He said he had to take action because fans were being unruly, yelling and arguing. However, West Burlington Superintendent James Sleister said he didn't see any unusual behavior and said he thought the umpire overreacted. The game resumed after a 40-minute delay. West Burlington won 12-11. The umpire called police as a precaution. West Burlington police officer Al Waterman says there were no arrests. He says he saw no unruliness himself. [Associated Press] Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.