A transgender player on the San Jose State women’s volleyball team will be allowed to compete in the Mountain West Championship this week.
The decision comes after a lawsuit was filed against San Jose State by players on the team, as well as others throughout the Mountain West.
The backstory: San Jose State team captain Brooke Slusser, associate head coach Melissa Batie-Smoose and others sued the university demanding that the transgender player, Blaire Fleming, be removed from the team before the Mountain West Championship.
- Several teams have forfeited games against San Jose State this season, but no teams have publicly stated that they have done so because of Fleming’s presence on the team.
- The lawsuit alleges that San Jose State administrators told the volleyball team to not discuss Fleming being transgender.
- Batie-Smoose alleged that she was suspended indefinitely by the university for standing up for the players’ rights.
The big picture: U.S. District Judge S. Kato Crews denied a motion filed by Slusser and the other plaintiffs to remove Fleming from the team.
- Crews said in his ruling that the Mountain West’s transgender participation policy has been in place since 2022, finding that the emergency nature of the lawsuit was unnecessary.
- “The Court finds the movants’ delay was not reasonable, there is no evidence to suggest they were precluded from seeking emergency relief earlier, and the rush to litigate these complex issues now over a mandatory injunction places a heavy lift on the MWC at the eleventh hour,” Crews ruled.
What we’re watching: The plaintiffs filed a notice to appeal Crews’ ruling. The date for that hearing had not been set by Monday.
- San Jose State will compete as the No. 2 seed in the conference championship tournament and will play on Friday against the winner of Utah State and Boise State.
- Fresno State is the No. 3 seed and will play against San Diego State on Wednesday for a chance to play No. 1 seed Colorado State in the semifinals.
What they’re saying: “San Jose State University will continue to support its student-athletes and reject discrimination in all forms,” San Jose State said in a statement. “All San Jose State University student-athletes are eligible to participate in their sports under NCAA and Mountain West Conference rules. We are gratified that the Court rejected an eleventh-hour attempt to change those rules. Our team looks forward to competing in the Mountain West volleyball tournament this week.”
