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Woman Accused Of Falsely Claiming Sacred Heart University Football Players Raped Her

FAIRFIELD, Conn. (CBSNewYork) -- A young woman from Suffolk County has been charged with falsely accusing football players from Sacred Heart University of raping her.

As WCBS 880's Mike Smeltz reported, Nikki Yovino, 18, of South Setauket, was at a party hosted by Sacred Heart football players last fall.

According to documents obtained by the Connecticut Post, Yovino allegedly first told police she was pulled into a bathroom by two football players where they held her down and sexually assaulted her.

As the investigation continued, several witnesses came forward claiming Yovino was a willing participant in what happened in that bathroom, the newspaper reported.

Then in a recent interview with police, Yovino told detectives that she made up her claim of sexual assault because she did not want to lose the interest of another male student -- who she hoped would become her boyfriend, the newspaper reported.

Yovino's lawyer, Mark Sherman, told WCBS 880 via email that he expects his client will plead not guilty at her arraignment next month. Sherman said details of what happened will come out at the appropriate time.

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