The University of Nevada has agreed to forfeit the school’s women’s volleyball match against San Jose State and transgender player Blaire Fleming.
The move comes after Nevada players clashed with their school over the previously scheduled game, as they released a statement saying they would not compete against San Jose State and Fleming on Oct. 26.
‘We demand that our right to safety and fair competition on the field is upheld. We refuse to participate in competitions that promote injustice against female athletes,” the players said in a statement sent to OutKick.
However, the University of Nevada initially refused to acknowledge the players’ decision and backtracked in its own statement, saying the volleyball team’s decision “does not represent” the school’s views.
However, on Friday, Nevada finally agreed to forfeit and announced they would not have enough players to compete.
San Jose State has fielded a transgender player in Blaire Fleming (photo)
But Nevada has now become the fifth school to forfeit a game against it
This marks the fifth time that a scheduled opponent of San Jose State has declined to file a lawsuit against them this season, as Boise State, Wyoming and Utah State and Southern Utah University have all made the same decision.
The decision by Nevada officials came after the school — in partnership with San Jose State — agreed to move the game to the latter’s campus.
Nevada faced Fresno State on Thursday and afterward the former school provided two buses for its players, one of which was reportedly destined for the campus and the other for San Jose State.
The players then decided to return home to Reno.
After Nevada’s initial statement, in which the school said the game against San Jose State would go ahead, Nevada team captain Sia Liilii revealed that her team had been completely blindsided.
Fleming, who stands 6-foot-1, is currently among the leaders in her points conference
Five teams forfeited games against SJSU due to safety issues due to Fleming
“The school released that statement without consulting our team. We were quite angry that we were not informed that a statement would be issued,” Liilii told OutKick.
More than a dozen female athletes, including one of Fleming’s teammates, are accusing the NCAA of knowingly violating a law banning sex discrimination by allowing a transgender player to compete in women’s sports.
Fleming, who plays as an outside and right-side hitter, enjoyed two seasons at San Jose State after previously playing at Coastal Carolina.
The player, who stands at 6-foot-4, currently ranks fourth in the Mountain West in kills and overall points.
