BOULDER, Colo. -- Two white University of Colorado athletes have been ticketed for sending racist, hate-filled Internet messages to a Hispanic cross country runner, according to a published report.

Clint O'Neal, a CU football player, and his girlfriend Jackie Zeigle, a cross country runner were cited for harassment and ethnic intimidation, the Boulder Daily Camera reported in its Thursday editions.

Police said that O'Neal and Zeigle sent the typo-filled messages to Greg Castro over the weekend, calling him a "river rat," "border hopper" and "bean eating peace (sic) of s***." The message also threatened to drag Castro behind a car.

The police report also accused the couple of sending a message to Stephen Pifer, a bi-racial friend of Castro, telling him to "stick with your own kind."

When police interviewed Zeigle, she told them that he is obsessed with her and harasses her, the newspaper reported. Zeigle and Castro are teammates.

Castro told the Daily Camera that he felt offended and threatened by the e-mail message and disputed Zeigle's charge that he has harassed her. Castro told police he felt threatened by the message and slept at a friend's house

Castro said his father is Mexican, and that he is proud of his heritage.

"When somebody says something like that, it doesn't sit well with you," he said. "Especially when it's such a big part of who you are."

Zeigle told the newspaper that the e-mail was the result of a "silly little fight" and that it was "totally blown out of proportion."

The CU athletic department is investigating. Investigators say the message was sent Sunday from O'Neal's account on an Internet portal for college students that requires a university e-mail address.

---

---

O'Neal told police he was upset after his team lost the Big 12 Championship game 70-3 to Texas. He told Zeigle to use his account and write the message, according to police.

Zeigle said she tried to make the message seem as if it were coming from O'Neal, a 6-foot-6, 305-pound offensive lineman.

"I retaliated by writing a horrible racist message to greg under clint's name and tried to sound like him so they thought he was mad @ them," Zeigle wrote in a statement to police.

Zeigle and O'Neal will appear in court on Dec. 19 on the misdemeanor charges.

Athletics department spokesman Dave Plati said he is aware of the police report and the department has notified the school's judicial affairs division.

The incident comes after several race-tinged incidents in Boulder over the past year. In February, those attending the Big 12 Conference on Black Student Affairs reported racist remarks, staring and poor service at an area restaurant. A student of mixed race heritage was assaulted during the spring semester as he walked near campus, breaking his jaw.

Last month, a black student government leader received an e-mail that threatened her life, prompting a campus police investigation and student rallies. No one has been charged in that case.