University of Washington denied ASWSU Global from purchasing 80 group tickets for this year’s Apple Cup in Seattle. Sheldon Adams, UW director of group and digital sales, responded days after CeCe Smith of ASWSU Global initially tried to buy the group tickets.

“We have been asked by our senior administration to only sell tickets to UW fans for this game,” Adams said in an email to Smith. “Similar requests have been made for the Oregon football game and Gonzaga basketball game.”

In her three years purchasing group tickets for the annual event, this is the first time Smith was denied.

ASWSU Global President Dennis Moton II said he was stunned to see Adams’ email.

“It was really shocking to hear ‘we’re not going to have sales for you because you’re not a Husky fan,’ ” Moton II said. “I have never heard of this happening before on either side.”

Neither Adams nor Carter Henderson, UW associate athletic director for marketing and communications, could be reached for comment.

Of six or seven events, the Apple Cup is one that ASWSU Global always offers to its students. And this year, the football game is in Seattle — a chance for Cougar fans on the west side of Washington to show their school pride, Moton II said.

“For us as Global campus students, we live busy lives,” Moton II said. “Our face-to-face events are opportunities to more closely connect to the WSU system.”

Instead of purchasing 80 group tickets, ASWSU Global is now limited to 20 single tickets because of the price increase, Smith said. The typical group discount no longer applies.

“Had we been given direct communication,” Smith said, “we could have secured more tickets at a lesser cost.”

On top of the higher ticket prices, Cougar fans will likely not be sitting together at Husky Stadium.

“I don’t know many people [who] like to go to a football game where they don’t go with a friend or a loved-one,” Moton II said. “It kind of kills the momentum of build-up because we know that we won’t necessarily be together.”

Moton II added that enjoying the event becomes more difficult when fans are not clumped together. To him, it sounds as if UW wants to jam the stadium with Husky fans.

“I guess on one hand, you understand,” Moton II added, “but to deny access, that just seems a little bush-league to me.”

Living in Everett, the president said he is surrounded by Husky fans, and they would be adamant if WSU were to disallow group tickets to a future Apple Cup in Pullman, he said.

“I can only imagine if I say, ‘hey, I know WSU isn’t going to allow you to buy tickets to come over for the rivalry game,’ ” Moton II said. “I’m sure they would be very upset.”