Current:Home > BackMountain West commissioner says she’s heartbroken over turmoil surrounding San Jose State volleyball-LoTradeCoin
Mountain West commissioner says she’s heartbroken over turmoil surrounding San Jose State volleyball
View Date:2025-01-11 13:50:32
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Mountain West Conference Commissioner Gloria Nevarez said Thursday the forfeitures that volleyball teams are willing to take to avoid playing San Jose State is “not what we celebrate in college athletics” and that she is heartbroken over what has transpired this season surrounding the Spartans and their opponents.
Four teams have canceled games against San Jose State: Boise State, Southern Utah, Utah State and Wyoming, with none of the schools explicitly saying why they were forfeiting.
A group of Nevada players issued a statement saying they will not take the floor when the Wolf Pack are scheduled to host the Spartans on Oct. 26. They cited their “right to safety and fair competition,” though their school reaffirmed Thursday that the match is still planned and that state law bars forfeiture “for reasons related to gender identity or expression.”
All those schools, except Southern Utah, are in the Mountain West. New Mexico, also in the MWC, was going ahead with a home match Thursday night against the Spartans.
“It breaks my heart because they’re human beings, young people, student-athletes on both sides of this issue that are getting a lot of national negative attention,” Nevarez said in an interview with The Associated Press at Mountain West basketball media days. “It just doesn’t feel right to me.”
Republican governors of Idaho, Nevada, Utah and Wyoming have made public statements in support of the cancellations, citing a need for fairness in women’s sports. Former President Donald Trump, the GOP nominee in this year’s presidential race, this week referenced an unidentified volleyball match when he was asked during a Fox News town hall about transgender athletes in women’s sports.
“I saw the slam, it was a slam. I never saw a ball hit so hard, hit the girl in the head,” Trump replied before he was asked what can be done. “You just ban it. The president bans it. You just don’t let it happen.”
After Trump’s comment, San Diego State issued a statement that said “it has been incorrectly reported that an San Diego State University student-athlete was hit in the face with a volleyball during match play with San Jose State University. The ball bounced off the shoulder of the student-athlete, and the athlete was uninjured and did not miss a play.”
San Jose State has not made any direct comments about the politicians’ “fairness” references, and Nevarez did not go into details.
“I’m learning a lot about the issue,” Nevarez said. “I don’t know a lot of the language yet or the science or the understanding nationally of how this issue plays out. The external influences are so far on either side. We have an election year. It’s political, so, yeah, it feels like a no-win based on all the external pressure.”
The cancellations could mean some teams will not qualify for the conference tournament Nov. 27-30 in Las Vegas, where the top six schools are slated to compete for the league championship.
“The student-athlete (in question) meets the eligibility standard, so if a team does not play them, it’s a forfeit, meaning they take a loss,” Nevarez said.
Ahead of the Oct. 26 match in Reno. Nevada released a statement acknowledging that “a majority of the Wolf Pack women’s volleyball team” had decided to forfeit against San Jose State. The school said only the university can take that step but any player who decides not to play would face no punishment.
___
AP college sports: https://apnews.com/hub/college-sports
veryGood! (6629)
Related
- Demure? Brain rot? Oxford announces shortlist for 2024 Word of the Year: Cast your vote
- Russia says it has crushed the last pocket of resistance in Avdiivka to complete the city’s capture
- Trump hawks $399 branded shoes at 'Sneaker Con,' a day after a $355 million ruling against him
- Death and redemption in an American prison
- What to know about Mississippi Valley State football player Ryan Quinney, who died Friday
- 1 dead, 5 others injured in early morning shooting at Indianapolis Waffle House
- Cougar attacks group of 5 cyclists on Washington bike trail leaving 1 woman hospitalized
- Student-run dance marathon raises $16.9 million in pediatric cancer funds
- Ex-Marine misused a combat technique in fatal chokehold of NYC subway rider, trainer testifies
- Alexey Navalny, fierce critic of Vladimir Putin, dies in a Russian penal colony, officials say
Ranking
- Satellite images and documents indicate China working on nuclear propulsion for new aircraft carrier
- Book excerpt: True North by Andrew J. Graff
- Virginia bank delays plans to auction land at resort owned by West Virginia governor’s family
- Kelly Osbourne says Ozempic use is 'amazing' after mom Sharon's negative side effects
- SNL's Chloe Fineman Says Rude Elon Musk Made Her Burst Into Tears as Show Host
- Pioneering Skier Kasha Rigby Dead in Avalanche at 54
- All the Couples Turning the 2024 People's Choice Awards Into a Date Night
- Chris Brown says he was disinvited from NBA All-Star Celebrity Game due to controversies
Recommendation
-
Get $103 Worth of Tatcha Skincare for $43.98 + 70% Off Flash Deals on Elemis, Josie Maran & More
-
Hundreds of officers tried to protect the Super Bowl parade. Here's why it wasn't enough.
-
How to save hundreds of dollars on your credit card payments
-
Jaromir Jagr’s return to Pittsburgh ends with his No. 68 being retired — and catharsis
-
Round 2 in the Trump-vs-Mexico matchup looks ominous for Mexico
-
NBA All-Star weekend: Mac McClung defends dunk title, Steph vs. Sabrina captivates
-
South Carolina's Dawn Staley says Caitlin Clark scoring record may never be broken again
-
Flood watches issued as another round of wet winter storms hits California