UNLV volleyball to play match amid transgender controversy
The UNLV volleyball team will not join three other Mountain West schools that forfeited matches in an apparent protest against the participation of transgender women in NCAA sports.
UNLV plans to play at San Jose State on Oct. 12 as scheduled, a program spokesperson told the Review-Journal on Wednesday.
Wyoming announced Tuesday that it would forfeit its home match against the Spartans scheduled for Saturday. Boise State did the same last week, forfeiting a Sept. 28 road match.
Early Thursday, Utah State announced it will forfeit its Oct. 23 match at San Jose State. UNR hasn’t decided whether it will play its Oct. 26 home match against the Spartans, according to a report.
Southern Utah also refused to play the Spartans during a tournament Sept. 14.
Brooke Slusser, a junior at San Jose State and a co-captain on the volleyball team, joined a lawsuit last week against the NCAA’s inclusion rules, saying that she no longer wants Spartans senior Blaire Fleming on the team on the allegation that she is transgender.
San Jose State is 9-0 and tied for the Mountain West lead at 2-0 with Colorado State. Those teams play Thursday in Fort Collins, Colorado.
UNLV (8-5, 1-1) has three matches scheduled before facing San Jose State, including hosting UNR at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at Cox Pavilion.
Rebels coach Malia Shoji and her players were not made available for comment.
“Their focus is on their two home games this week,” the spokesperson said.
‘Disappointing’ decisions
Boise State and Wyoming did not cite a reason for forfeiting their matchups with San Jose State.
Wyoming only said the decision came “after a lengthy discussion,” citing Mountain West policy to explain that it would be recorded as a loss.
But politicians in both states inserted their stances into the forfeiture’s meanings.
Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon, a Republican, publicly supported the decision on X, writing: “I am in full support of the decision by (Wyoming) to forego playing its volleyball match against San Jose State. It is important we stand for integrity and fairness in female athletics.”
Idaho Gov. Brad Little, a Republican who signed an executive order in August opposing Title IX protections for LGBTQ+ athletes, backed Boise State’s decision as well.
“I applaud (Boise State) for working within the spirit of my Executive Order, the Defending Women’s Sports Act,” Little said on X. “We need to ensure player safety for all of our female athletes and continue the fight for fairness in women’s sports.”
San Jose State released a statement in response to the latest forfeiture, calling the decisions “disappointing.”
“Our SJSU student athletes, all of who are in full compliance with NCAA and Mountain West rules and regulations, are being denied opportunities to compete,” the program said. “We are committed to supporting our student athletes through these challenges and in their ability to compete in an inclusive, safe and respectful environment.”
Rules and lawsuits
Fleming, a 6-foot-1-inch outside hitter who is in her third season with San Jose State, is second on the team with 119 kills this season.
Slusser alleges in the recent filing that she regularly roomed with Fleming for road trips in 2023 but was never informed that she was transgender until overhearing a conversation in which students who were not on the team referred to Fleming as a “dude.”
The filing claims Fleming told Slusser over sandwiches that she was a “transgender woman,” but Fleming has not spoken about her gender identity publicly.
In 2022, the NCAA revised its policies to match “transgender student-athlete participation with the Olympic Movement.”
Regulations now vary on a sport-by-sport basis, but trans players are allowed to compete if they have undergone one year of hormone treatment. They must also meet the testosterone level required by the most widely established governing body of their sport.
Contact Callie Fin at clawsonfreeman@reviewjournal.com. Follow @CallieJLaw on X