San Jose State University aimed a thinly-veiled dig at Boise State women’s volleyball team after the Broncos forfeited Friday’s championship semifinal amid controversy over trans player Blaire Fleming.
Earlier this week, the Broncos beat Utah State to book its place in the last four of the Mountain West postseason tournament.
But Boise State then withdrew from the game, insisting their players ‘should not have to forgo this opportunity while waiting for a more thoughtful and better system that serves all athletes.’
The statement did not mention Fleming by name but it came after the Broncos twice refused to face San Jose State during the regular season.
The Spartans player has been at the center of a storm over recent months, with Fleming the subject of lawsuits and accusations that she conspired with a rival to hurt a teammate.
Six SJSU regular season games were ruled no contests after the opposition refused to play and now the Spartans are into the conference championship game.
Transgender volleyball player Blaire Fleming has been at the center of a storm in recent months
Six San Jose State regular season games were ruled no contests after the opposition forfeited
In a statement, San Jose State came out in ‘support (of) all our students’ and appeared to hit out at Boise State.
‘In this time of Thanksgiving, we are especially thankful for those who continue to engage in civil and respectful discourse,’ SJSU said.
‘We celebrate and support all of our students, including our student-athletes as they compete for our community on this holiday weekend.
‘While we are disappointed in Boise State’s decision, our women’s volleyball team is preparing for Saturday’s match and looks forward to competing for a championship.’
SJSU will face the winner of Colorado State and San Diego State, who meet in the other semifinal on Friday.
Earlier this week, Fleming was among those honored in the Mountain West’s postseason award. That is despite the redshirt senior being at the center of a lawsuit involving her own teammates, who sued their head coach, the college and the Mountain West, demanding Fleming be declared ineligible for the Conference tournament.
San Jose State coach Melissa Batie-Smoose, meanwhile, accused the school of trying to ‘silence’ her after she was suspended following complaints about Fleming.
The NCAA is also facing a class-action lawsuit from more than a dozen female athletes, who accuse the organization of knowingly violating a law that prohibits sex-based discrimination.
Boise State women’s volleyball team pulled out of its semifinal against San Jose State
A judge denied a last-minute attempt to ban Fleming from the conference championship
Colorado State’s Malaya Jones was named the Mountain West Player of the Year, even though she was accused of conspiring with Fleming to throw a game – and ‘blast’ SJSU star Brooke Slusser – during a game last month.
The awards came after a judge denied a last-minute attempt to ban Fleming from the conference championship tournament as well as from any possible future NCAA Tournament games.
Judge Kato Crews ruled that the lawsuit ‘was not reasonable’ and that it ‘would risk confusion and upend months of planning and would prejudice, at a minimum, (San Jose State) and other teams participating in the tournament.’
Boise State, Wyoming, Utah State, Nevada, and Southern Utah canceled games this season against the Spartans, while Nevada’s players said they ‘refuse to participate in any match that advances injustice against female athletes,’ without providing further details.