LANSING - The criminal case against former Michigan State University gymnastics coach Kathie Klages will move forward following the testimony from two women who said that in 1997 they told her that Larry Nassar sexually assaulted them.

Klages, 64, of Mason, faces two charges of lying to police about her knowledge of sexual assault complaints against Nassar prior to 2016.

One charge is a felony, the other a misdemeanor. Klages faces up to four years in prison if convicted.

The case will now move to Ingham County Circuit Court, where Klages could stand trial.

Mary Chartier, one of Klages' attorneys, told reporters after the hearing that her client is innocent and they'll fight the case at trial.

District Court Judge Louise Alderson said the two women who testified did so with specificity about events that happened more than 20 years ago.

"I find them both credible witnesses," she said before issuing her ruling. "Even though they were both 14 and 16 years of age at the time, their recollection today from the stand was clear."

Related:Kathie Klages charges tied to two teens’ complaints of Larry Nassar’s sexual abuse in 1997

The women were Larissa Boyce and another woman who has not spoken publicly about her abuse so the State Journal is not identifying her. Boyce was one of the first women to speak publicly about her abuse by Nassar and has done so several times since early 2017, including about her disclosure to Klages.

Nassar, 55, formerly of Holt, sexually abused hundreds of women and girls over the course of more than 20 years, with nearly all the abuses occurring during medical appointments.

He's serving 60 years in prison on federal child pornography charges and was also sentenced to decades more in prison on 10 sexual assault charges.

'Almost an investigation by Ms. Klages'

Both women testified that they were members of the Spartan Youth Gymnastics program in 1997 when Nassar sexually assaulted them and they discussed it with each other.

Boyce then disclosed to a coach, who had her speak with Klages, according to testimony. Boyce told Klages the other woman had a similar experience, Boyce testified.

The other woman then told Klages that Nassar had sexually assaulted her during a treatment appointment, she testified.

Klages was the MSU gymnastics coach at the time but occasionally worked with the youth program, according to testimony. Nassar was the trainer for the MSU team at the time and Boyce testified that he worked with the youth gymnastics as well.

Both Boyce and the other woman said Klages called in some of the MSU gymnasts to speak with them about Nassar's treatments. The two women also testified that Klages told them she could file a formal report but that it would result in serious consequences for them and Nassar. They said they were discouraged from reporting.

Much of Boyce's testimony on Thursday echoed what she's said in media interviews over the past two years and during her Ingham County victim-impact statement.

Klages has been interviewed about this several times by law enforcement and said she didn't remember. In June, David Dwyre and another AG's Office investigator interviewed Klages while her attorney was present. The investigators recorded the interview even though they told Klages they weren't going to.

During the interview, Klages said she didn't remember either woman telling her about Nassar's abuse in 1997 and that no gymnast had ever reported abuse by Nassar to her prior to 2016, according to Dwyre's testimony and portions of the transcript that were read in court.

"(Boyce and the other woman) did not go into that office on their own to report," Alderson said while making her ruling. "Something was in the swirl beforehand because they were called into that.

"So it just heightens the fact that this was almost an investigation by Ms. Klages about some allegations. ... So you call in people and you make your due diligence. And so that just heightens the idea that Ms. Klages would have specific recollection of a situation where two young girls had specifically talked about a fairly intimate sexual activity by Mr. Nassar."

Chartier, one of Klages' attorneys, pointed out in her closing argument that Klages sent her children and a grandchild to be treated by Nassar after 1997.

Dwyre testified on Thursday that he didn't believe Klages when she told him she didn't remember, but it impacted what he did next in the investigation. That impact, Alderson said, was enough when coupled with the testimony from Boyce and the other woman to rule there was enough evidence for the case against Klages to move forward.

Klages had been the MSU women's gymnastics coach for 27 years when she retired in February 2017, a day after the university suspended her over concerns with the way she handled a September 2016 team meeting after sexual assault allegations against Nassar were made public.

Her suspension and retirement came amid growing criticism of Klages, the way she handled reports of Nassar's behavior and her defense of Nassar.

For instance, she told the mother of a victim that the child pornography found on Nassar's property might have been planted, according to court records.

Klages was charged last month. She became the second former MSU employee charged as part of the Attorney General's Office investigation of the university's handling of Nassar.

Contact Matt Mencarini at (517) 267-1347 or mmencarini@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @MattMencarini.