A women’s college volleyball match has been forfeited amid controversy surrounding the presence of a trans player.
Boise State announced the forfeiture of Saturday’s match with San Jose State on the school’s athletics website without offering a specific reason.
‘Boise State volleyball will not play its scheduled match at San José State on Saturday, Sept. 28,’ read the statement. ‘Per Mountain West Conference policy, the Conference will record the match as a forfeit and a loss for Boise State. The Broncos will next compete on Oct. 3 against Air Force.’
Meanwhile, the Mountain West Conference has been notified by the Independent Council on Women’s Sports (ICONS) about athletes’ safety concerns regarding Blaire Fleming, a redshirt junior on San Jose State who happens to be trans.
The exact concerns from Boise State have not been directly addressed. However, one of Fleming’s teammates, Brooke Slusser, has said Fleming admitted to being biologically male, per Outkick.
Fleming has been cleared by San Jose State to play for the school’s women’s volleyball team for three seasons, joining the team in 2022.
A recent volleyball matchup was canceled after Boise State refused to play San Jose State
The NCAA has also released a statement on the game’s cancelation that led to the Spartans record improving to 10-0.
‘College sports are the premier stage for women’s sports in America and the NCAA members will continue to promote Title IX, make unprecedented investments in women’s sports and ensure fair competition for all student-athletes in all NCAA championships.’
Boise State is reportedly the third school to refuse a scheduled match against San Jose State or to have considered pulling out.
Outkick has published portions of ICONS’ letter to the Mountain West Conference.
‘Over the last few weeks, we have spoken with distraught student-athletes and their parents, coaches, and administrators throughout the Mountain West Conference (MWC) regarding a crisis in MWC women’s volleyball,’ the letter to the conference read, per Outkick.
San Jose State spokespeople did not immediately respond to DailyMail.com’s request for comment.
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