Photo by Vince Fleming on Unsplash
CV NEWS FEED // The University of Nevada stated after its women’s volleyball team decided to forfeit a match against a team with a biological male, that the decision “does not represent” school policy.
OutKick reported on October 14 that the volleyball team voted to forfeit a game against San Jose State University, as the team includes Blair Fleming, who is a biological male. The University of Nevada is the fifth school to forfeit against San Jose.
Nevada’s team voted to forfeit the game after the university made an exclusive statement to Outkick on October 3 that the team would play San Jose. After the team’s statement that it would forfeit the game, the university made a second statement, saying the forfeiture “does not represent the school’s policy.”
The latest October 14 statement from the school reads:
The players’ decision and statement were made independently, and without consultation with the University or the athletic department. […] The University intends to move forward with the match as scheduled, and 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.
The women’s volleyball team had stated earlier on October 13:
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. 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.
Members of the team expressed frustration at the university’s initial October 3 statement to Outkick that the team would play San Jose.
“The school released that statement without consulting our team at all,” said Sia Liilii, a senior and one of two team captains. “We were pretty upset that we were not made aware that a statement was going to come out.”
She added, “We were actually in Las Vegas preparing for our match against UNLV, our in-state rival. It was a really frustrating time, especially because we were about to go and play a big game.”
Liilii explained the team’s decision not to play San Jose: “We decided that we’re going to stand in solidarity with other teams that have already forfeited and that we wouldn’t participate in a game that advances sex-based discrimination or injustice against female athletes.”
Women’s sports activist Riley Gaines commended the team’s decision, writing in an X post:
