CHARLOTTE, N.C., Dec. 18 (UPI) -- A North Carolina high school basketball coach says he has an $8,100 credit card charge for airplane tickets to send his team to a tournament that was canceled.
Coach Ty Baumgardner, of nationally ranked Olympic High School in Charlotte, prepaid for 20 tickets with his personal credit card and was given an assurance the tournament would refund the purchase. His team and staff were to participate in the post-Christmas Gulfshore Invitational in Naples, Fla., but learned the event was canceled after corporate sponsorship for the event fell through, teams began to drop out and a promised travel stipend could not be honored, The Charlotte (N.C.) Observer reported Tuesday.
The airline, US Airways, has not offered to refund the charges, Baumgardner said, adding, "US Airways has always been very helpful, but the people we've talked to so far say their policy is [that] tickets are non-refundable. They can give a credit but it's $150 to change destinations. Maybe they'll show some holiday cheer and help us out."
