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The San Jose State women's volleyball team has already seen four of its matches canceled this season amid a national controversy over a transgender player on the team. However, that series of cancelations may have come to its end as the team looks to push forward in its season.
A spokesperson from San Jose State University told Fox News Digital on Thursday that no upcoming opponents have informed the team it plans to forfeit after Boise State, Southern Utah, Wyoming and Utah State forfeited their matches.
"We have no notifications of cancelations at this time. We are scheduled to play home games tonight against San Diego State and Saturday against UNLV," the spokesperson said.
After a loss in straight sets to San Diego State on Thursday night, the team fell to 9-2 on the season. Now, the team will look to proceed with its regular schedule, as none of its opponents have informed the team to expect any more forfeits, at least for the time being.
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Blaire Fleming, #3, a redshirt senior at San Jose State University, plays as an outside and right-side hitter on the women’s volleyball team. (San Jose State University)
The team has 13 regular season games remaining. The slate includes two matches against UNLV, two matches against New Mexico, two matches against Air Force, a rematch with San Diego State, a rematch against Colorado State, a match against Fresno State and a game against Nevada.
The schedule also includes second matches against three of the four teams that have already forfeited their first match against the Spartans, with a match against Utah State scheduled for Oct. 23, a match against Wyoming on Nov. 14 and a match against Boise State on Nov. 21, in the final game of the regular season.
Those programs have not announced forfeits of their second matches against San Jose State yet.
San Jose State's season finale against Boise State, which is set to be played at Boise State's campus in Boise, Idaho. Idaho Gov. Brad Little signed an executive order to enforce the Defending Women's Sports Act on Aug. 28, which is aimed at ensuring public schools do not allow biological males to participate in girls' or women's sports.
Little commended Boise State for forfeiting its first match against San Jose State on Sept. 28, praising the school for upholding the purpose of his bill. That match was scheduled to be played in California, where there are no such laws to prevent transgenders in women's sports.
WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL TEAM WITH TRANSGENDER PLAYER GETTING POLICE PROTECTION AMID INTENSE BACKLASH
San Jose State volleyball head coach Todd Kress previously spoke out against the role politics and the government has played in impeding his team's ability to play the matches on its schedule.
"We're in a position where it appears that government and politics has kind of intertwined itself with college sports. And the one thing that I love about college sports, it's always been a safe haven for me, that's one area that government I don't think should be involved. And it seems that some of those decisions are being made at levels to where they're denying their student athletes as well, which is then denying our student athletes," Kress told reporters on Oct. 3.
San Jose State University Spartans head coach Todd Kress speaks with members of the news media following their loss in an NCAA Mountain West women’s volleyball game against the Colorado State University Rams in Fort Collins, Colorado, on Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024. (Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)
San Jose State has become the poster child for the national debate over transgender inclusion in women's sports after junior Brooke Slusser, who joined the team in 2023 after transferring from Alabama, joined in a lawsuit against the NCAA, headed by former college swimmer and OutKick contributor Riley Gaines, over the governing body's current policies on gender identity. Slusser cited her experience with San Jose State teammate Blaire Fleming, who has been a key player for the team this year.
Slusser claimed that she had not been aware that Fleming was transgender, despite sharing rooms together on team trips, per the court documents. Slusser also expressed safety concerns for opponents playing against Fleming. Slusser's complaint said that she and the other players on the team "could not fully protect themselves" from Fleming's volleyball spikes.
The situation has become so tense, that police protection has been assigned to increase the team's security, Fox News Digital previously reported.
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Jackson Thompson is a sports writer for Fox News Digital. He previously worked for ESPN and Business Insider. Jackson has covered the Super Bowl and NBA Finals, and has interviewed iconic figures Usain Bolt, Rob Gronkowski, Jerry Rice, Troy Aikman, Mike Trout, David Ortiz and Roger Clemens.
