Utah State University’s Old Main is pictured on Oct. 8, 2024. (Photo by Kelly Winter for Utah News Dispatch)
This story was originally posted on IdahoEdNews.org
A federal judge has rejected a court motion targeting a member of San José State University’s women’s volleyball team — a player identified in court documents as a transgender athlete.
Monday’s ruling rejected a legal challenge filed by 12 plaintiffs, including two Boise State University volleyball players and one Utah State University player. And the ruling puts Boise State, Utah State and San José State on a collision course in this week’s Mountain West Conference postseason tournament.
Boise State has already forfeited two matches against San José State this season, as the Boise State and the Mountain West became a focal point in the polarized national debate over transgender athletics.
Plaintiffs argued that a transgender athlete has an unfair physical advantage over female athletes, putting them at increased risk of injury. The lawsuit also challenged a Mountain West “transgender participation policy” that required Mountain West teams to forfeit six conference matches against San José State.
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In a 27-page decision, Colorado-based U.S. District Judge S. Kato Crews denied all of the plaintiffs’ demands — including a request to rescind the conference’s transgender participation policy, and void San José State’s six forfeit wins.
Crews noted that the legal battle has proceeded in “rocket fashion.” However, Crews also suggested the plaintiffs deliberately waited to file their lawsuit until Nov. 13, two weeks before the Mountain West’s postseason tournament was set to begin. Crews also noted that the player in question has been on San José State’s roster since 2022.
San José State has never publicly discussed the player’s gender, although Crews noted in his ruling that “no defendant disputed that SJSU rosters a trans woman volleyball player.”
The transgender athletics issue has divided Mountain West member schools. Four Mountain West teams — Boise State, Utah State, Wyoming and Nevada — forfeited matches, while other schools proceeded with matches with San José State.
Mountain West schools also responded differently to the lawsuit. Utah State joined the plaintiffs in the unsuccessful legal challenge, at the urging of state political leaders. Boise State did not intervene in the lawsuit.
Boise State players Kiersten and Katelyn Van Kirk, two sisters from Bozeman, Mont., were among the plaintiffs in the case.
With Crews’ ruling, the Mountain West tournament’s schedule remains intact.
Boise State and Utah State are scheduled to meet in a first-round matchup Wednesday in Las Vegas. The winner of that match would advance to a semifinal match Friday with San José State.
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