SJSU women's volleyball's 1st opponent didn't know about trans player, suggests match wouldn't have happened

EXCLUSIVE: On Aug. 30, Louisiana Tech's women's volleyball squad took the tribunal successful Fullerton, California, for a play opener against San Jose State and Spartan elder Blaire Fleming astatine the yearly Cal State Fullerton Invitational. Fleming, 1 of the apical players successful the full Mountain West, has been alleged to beryllium a trans jock and biologic antheral successful aggregate lawsuits.

Louisiana Tech caput volleyball manager Amber McCray confirmed to Fox News Digital connected Wednesday that she and her squad were unaware of these allegations erstwhile they played the lucifer against San Jose State connected Aug. 30. LA Tech mislaid successful consecutive sets arsenic Fleming led the crippled successful kills with 14 and full attacks with 29. 

A San Jose State spokesperson confirmed to Fox News Digital connected Wednesday that the Northern California-based assemblage did not formally notify the opponents connected its volleyball docket of the concern involving the archetypal suit and the discourse successful it aft it was filed successful September. The crippled betwixt San Jose State and LA Tech took spot anterior to the archetypal lawsuit, amid a fewer reports of the concern by aggregate media outlets. 

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Brooke Slusser and Blaire Fleming of the San Jose State Spartans telephone a play during the archetypal acceptable against the Air Force Falcons astatine Falcon Court astatine East Gym connected Oct. 19, 2024 successful Colorado Springs, Colorado.  (Andrew Wevers/Getty Images)

The archetypal tribunal documents that alleged Fleming is simply a trans jock were filed successful precocious September erstwhile teammate Brooke Slusser joined a suit against the NCAA for its policies connected sex individuality and eligibility. Slusser alleged that San Jose State made an effort to fell Fleming's biologic enactment from Slusser and different players since Fleming transferred to the schoolhouse successful 2022. Slusser claims she shared changing spaces and a chamber with Fleming without knowing that information.

When asked if San Jose State notified LA Tech of the concern involving Fleming and complaints by players anterior to the archetypal tribunal filings, a San Jose State spokesperson noted that Slusser didn't articulation the suit until September. That spokesperson has declined to corroborate whether immoderate announcement was fixed to LA Tech connected the concern anterior to that. 

However, that spokesperson has confirmed that San Jose State has been successful connection with each campuses the squad visits for distant games to coordinate security. Police extortion was assigned to the squad astatine the commencement of October amid alleged threats against Slusser's well-being, Fox News Digital previously reported. Those information efforts see coordinating backup from different constabulary departments erstwhile the squad travels.

News of the archetypal suit and contention surrounding Fleming's beingness connected the squad dispersed and prompted a full of 7 forfeited matches from 5 antithetic teams connected San Jose State's schedule. 

But LA Tech's caput volleyball manager and diversion manager claims the squad did not person the accusation to marque an informed determination connected whether they should forfeit. Instead, McCray said the squad recovered retired that adjacent time by connection from parents who had heard rumors. 

McCray and LA Tech diversion manager Ryan Ivey archetypal addressed their deficiency of cognition of the concern successful an email effect to a missive from The Concerned Women of America of Louisiana (CWALA) and its State Director Laura Hubber.

SAN JOSE STATE'S BROOKE SLUSSER BACKS TRUMP'S TRANS ATHLETES BAN AFTER ALLEGED UNFAIRNESS FROM SCHOOL

In Ivey's response, helium indicated that the squad would person sought "a antithetic outcome" if they had known astir the allegations successful Slusser's lawsuits, which had been antecedently reported but not officially notified to LA Tech.

"We received nary notification anterior to the lucifer with San Jose State that a transgender jock would beryllium competing.  Had we been notified; we would person worked toward a antithetic outcome. I tin guarantee you that providing a harmless and equitable situation for our pistillate student-athletes to vie and unrecorded retired their dreams and ambitions is of the utmost value to us," Ivey wrote successful an email addressed from Ivey to Huber that has been obtained by Fox News Digital. 

McCray's email effect recounted erstwhile her squad learned of Fleming's commencement enactment the pursuing day.

"We were not made alert of Blaire Fleming’s concern until the nighttime aft our lucifer against San Jose State, truthful determination was nary cognition of the request to hole our squad for this. It was besides the precise archetypal lucifer of the season, and the 1 and lone lucifer each twelvemonth we bash not person a prepared scouting study connected our hostile due to the fact that determination is nary video disposable yet connected the existent season’s squad and frankincense nary probe connected their existent players. While the nationalist revelation astir Blaire Fleming came successful April 2024, it did not marque nationalist quality wherever it was wide circulated until this Fall 2024 season, hence the crushed wherefore San Jose State opponents did not forfeit matches successful erstwhile years arsenic they person this year," McCray wrote. 

McCray besides said that she believes the big squad astatine the August invitational, Cal State Fullerton, was not alert of Fleming's commencement enactment either. 

"Host squad Cal State Fullerton did not pass america that a transgender student-athlete was competing connected 1 of the teams invited to the tournament. I americium besides unsure if they were made alert anterior to the competition, oregon if they recovered retired afterwards similar we did," McCray wrote. 

McCray besides confirmed that the LA Tech players were kept successful a abstracted and distant locker country from San Jose State's players. 

"I americium unsure of San Jose State’s locker country situation, but I cognize our squad was separated from some different teams arsenic our locker country was connected the other broadside of the gathering from some San Jose State and Cal State Fullerton the full play of [Aug. 30 to Aug. 31]," McCray wrote. 

Louisiana became the 18th authorities successful the U.S. to enact a authorities instrumentality to forestall trans inclusion successful women's sports successful the summertime of 2022. 

That July, the authorities passed the Fairness successful Women's Sports Act, which requires schools to "designate intercollegiate and interscholastic diversion teams according to the biologic enactment of the squad members." It defines "biological sex" arsenic the enactment listed connected a person's commencement certificate astatine the clip of their birth. It besides explicitly states that teams designated for females are "not unfastened to participation" by anyone whose commencement certificate said male, which specifically excludes trans girls and women.

The instrumentality applies to nationalist elementary, mediate and precocious schools, arsenic good arsenic nationalist universities. It volition besides use to immoderate backstage schoolhouse oregon assemblage that receives nationalist funds. The instrumentality besides gives students and others the quality to writer schools who let trans girls and women to play connected pistillate sports teams, and prevents enactment taken against anyone who reports a schoolhouse who violates the law.

LA Tech's lucifer against San Jose State took spot successful California, however, wherever determination is simply a instrumentality to support trans inclusion successful women's sports.

Concerned Women for America legislative strategist Macy Petty provided a remark to Fox News Digital connected the dialog betwixt LA Tech and the organization. 

"Dozens of pistillate athletes this autumn had to find retired done quality outlets that the instauration they’ve been sacrificing their full lives for stabbed them successful the back. Some of them, specified arsenic LA Tech, didn’t adjacent cognize until aft they competed successful the farce. The almighty administrators are yet having to answer, and we enactment these girls arsenic they instrumentality to the courts. The ineligible court, that is," Petty said. 

Slusser has since filed different suit against the Mountain West and is joined by respective different players successful the league successful alleging the league and San Jose State person failed to support pistillate athletes amid Fleming's ongoing inclusion. 

An exigency proceeding has been scheduled for Thursday successful Denver. A justice volition find whether to assistance an injunction that seeks to disqualify San Jose State from competing successful the league tourney and disqualify Fleming from competing successful the upcoming league tournament. The injunction is besides seeking to region the losses from the records of 5 teams who protested by not competing against SJSU.

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Colorado State University constabulary down the San Jose State University Spartans seat show Moby Arena during an NCAA Mountain West women’s volleyball crippled betwixt the Spartans and the Colorado State Rams successful Fort Collins, Colo., connected Thursday, Oct. 03, 2024. (Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)

San Jose State finished the regular play with a 14-5 grounds and a 12-5 league record. Seven of its wins and six of its league wins came via forfeit by opposing teams amid the controversy. Utah State and Boise State are successful the tourney representation and could beryllium imaginable opponents for San Jose State successful Las Vegas. They person already taken losses. Boise State accepted 2 losses aft refusing to look Fleming earlier successful the season. 

A Mountain West spokesperson told Fox News Digital connected Wednesday that if San Jose State reaches the last successful the upcoming tournament, and their hostile successful that crippled forfeits retired of protest, that San Jose State would beryllium recognized arsenic league champions and gain an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. 

San Jose State has repeatedly defended the beingness of Fleming connected the team. 

"Our athletes each comply with NCAA and Mountain West Conference policies and are eligible to play nether the rules of those organizations. Our volleyball squad members person earned the close to compete, and we are profoundly disappointed for them and with them that they are being denied those opportunities done cancelations and forfeits. We are besides arrogant of however they person persevered done these challenges connected the court," a connection provided to Fox News Digital by a assemblage spokesperson said.

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