U of Nevada female volleyball players refuse to play against team with 6 ft tall man, school plans to hold match anyway
The Nevada team announced that it ‘stand[s] united in solidarity' with other women's teams that have refused to play.
The school is going ahead with the match anyway.
The University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) has moved ahead in scheduling a women’s volleyball game against San Jose State University (SJSU) despite its female players’ refusal to play against SJSU’s team because it has a male player.
The UNR players announced their plans to forfeit an upcoming Oct. 26 game against SJSU due to the presence of a 6-foot-tall male player on the team, OutKick reported on Monday. The player, Blaire Fleming, is a man who “identifies” as a woman.
UNR’s female volleyball team joins those of several other schools in refusing to play an unfair and potentially unsafe match. The teams of the Universities of Utah State, Boise State, Wyoming, and Southern Utah also forfeited matches against SJSU rather than play against a female team with a man.
“We, the University of Nevada Reno women’s volleyball team, forfeit against San Jose State University and stand united in solidarity with the volleyball teams of Southern Utah University, Boise State University, the University of Wyoming, and Utah State University,” UNR’s players told OutKick. “We demand that our right to safety and fair competition on the court be upheld. We refuse to participate in any match that advances injustice against female athletes.”
Nevada’s volleyball team’s statement came after the school told OutKick that the match would go ahead as planned, though the female athletes said that they were not consulted about the decision.
“The school released that statement without consulting our team at all,” Sia Liilii, senior and captain, told OutKick. “We were pretty upset that we were not made aware that a statement was going to come out.”
UNR told OutKick on Monday that, despite the players’ refusal to participate, the match will go ahead “as scheduled” and the volleyball team’s refusal to play against Fleming “does not represent the position of the University.” It added that “the players may choose not to participate in the match on the day of the contest. No players will be subject to any team disciplinary action for their decision not to participate in the match.”
An SJSU spokesperson told Campus Reform that its athletes are “in full compliance with NCAA and Mountain West rules and regulations. We remain committed to supporting all of our student athletes-including their mental health and physical safety, both on and off the court during this challenging time. We will continue to work to ensure their ability to participate in an inclusive, fair, and respectful environment.”
In response to a request for comment, UNR sent Campus Reform its original statement regarding the players’ choice not to participate.
