Duke University announced on Tuesday night that its men’s lacrosse team would forfeit all scheduled games until there was a “clearer resolution” of allegations of rape and assault against members of the team. An exotic dancer who is said to be a student at North Carolina Central University, also in Durham, N.C., has accused three men of raping and choking her at an off-campus party held by the lacrosse team this month (The Chronicle, March 27).

According to a statement released by the team’s captains on Tuesday, “the DNA results will demonstrate that these allegations are absolutely false.” Forty-six of the 47 players on the team, currently ranked ninth in the country, have submitted DNA samples to the State Bureau of Investigation. The lone African-American student on the team was excused because the alleged victim, who is also black, said her attackers were all white men.

Until results of the DNA test are known, the team will not compete, Richard H. Brodhead, the university’s president, said at a news conference on Tuesday night. “In this painful period of uncertainty, it is clear to me, as it was to the players, that it would be inappropriate to resume the normal schedule of play,” he said. “Sports have their time and place, but when an issue of this gravity is in question, it is not the time to be playing games.”

The athletes have admitted to underage drinking and hiring an exotic dancer, said Mr. Brodhead, responding to questions from reporters. But going from “boorish behavior … to what is alleged is still a very, very serious step,” he said.

“We need to find out what happened, and only when that is established will we know what the correct response is,” he said. Results of the DNA test may be ready by next week, according to local reports.