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Frustrated by what he called "very petty" accusations of illegal recruiting, Northern Guilford basketball coach Stan Kowalewski has filed a defamation lawsuit against Northwest Guilford athletics director John Hughes.

Kowalewski accuses Hughes of starting "a public relations campaign designed to defame (Kowalewski) and to cast doubt as to the legitimacy and integrity of the Northern Guilford boys basketball program."

"I felt like I had no other choice," said Kowalewski, who was cleared of wrongdoing after an investigation by the school district, his athletics director said.

Hughes declined to comment. His attorney, Amiel Rossabi, said Hughes "was clearly just doing his job" and "has done nothing wrong, legally or morally."

The suit was filed Sept. 8 in Guilford County Superior Court. Hughes has 30 days to respond and can file for a 30-day extension. Kowalewski is asking for punitive damages of more than $10,000 for "mental pain and suffering, humiliation, embarrassment, and injury to his reputation."

The spat started late last year after Hughes sent an e-mail to Northwest principal Angelo Kidd expressing concern about the influx of players to Northern, which played its first season of varsity sports last year. Specifically, Rossabi said, Hughes mentioned a rumor that the father of a player on Northern's basketball team was given a custodial job at the school so his son could play there.

"Given the facts as we know it, it was the right thing (for Hughes) to do," Rossabi said.

Kowalewski alleges Hughes also accused him in the e-mail of:

• providing housing and transportation to certain students and their families.

• improperly providing and paying for locker room amenities, out-of-state trips, meals, airfare and other items.

• enrolling students in Northern Guilford who did not live in the attendance zone.

Kowalewski denies the accusations.

Kidd forwarded Hughes' e-mail to officials with the school district, Rossabi said. Kidd declined to comment.

Around that time, the district initiated an investigation of Northern. Athletics director Derrell Force said Wednesday he couldn't remember whether the investigation occurred before or after Hughes' e-mail. Force said Herb Goins, then the county athletics director, and Carla Alphin, a human resource administrator for the system, came to the school and talked with him, Kowalewski and other school officials.

"They could find nothing Stan had done that was illegal," Force said.

Goins did not return a phone call at his home. Alphin declined to comment, citing personnel issues.

Kowalewski alleges Hughes "continued to make and publish false and defamatory statements" about him following the investigation. He said that caused "bitterness toward our program" and that it was "time to take a stand."

"My school and my administration are tired of people making allegations they can't back up," Kowalewski said.

Kowalewski joined Northern Guilford in 2007 after spending the previous season at High Point Central. He was fired as head coach of Bishop McGuinness in 2004, a decision he contested for months with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte.

He alleges part of the reason Hughes defamed him was "as a result of the success enjoyed" by the Northern basketball team last season, including two wins over Northwest in two meetings.

"That has got to be one of the most ridiculous things I have ever heard," Rossabi said. "It was not anything personal."

Kowalewski said Hughes is not the only athletic official in the area to publicly question Northern's legitimacy, and he hopes this suit will deter such talk in the future.

"If there's no consequence," Kowalewski said, "we keep spinning our wheels, keep getting distracted and our reputation keeps getting damaged.

"We felt like it was the only way to get their attention."

Contact Tom Keller at 373-7034 or tom.keller@news-record.com