San Jose State University Volleyball Team Split Over Player Who Can ‘Hit Ball 80 MPH’

A volleyball player who can hit a ball 80 miles per hour has an unfair advantage over his opponents, according to a new lawsuit, and at least one college has canceled a game against the player’s team.

Blaire Fleming, a San Jose State University (SJSU) outside hitter and right back, is a redshirt junior at the school.

According to her teammate Brooke Slusser, she admitted that she is biologically male.

Teammate Brooke Slusser has filed a lawsuit against the NCAA over the player’s inclusion. She said in a proposed addendum to the complaint that Fleming, who Slusser said is biologically male, hit the balls “faster than she had ever seen a woman hit a volleyball,” Cowboy State Daily reported.

“The girls did everything they could to dodge Fleming’s barbs, but still couldn’t completely protect themselves,” she wrote in the addition, according to the publication, which viewed the lawsuit.

Fleming transferred from Coastal Carolina University in South Carolina, where she played on the women’s team, shortly after the state passed the Save Women’s Sports bill, which would have banned her from playing on women’s teams.

The player also competed on the girls’ team at her high school, John Champe, in Virginia, according to Reduxx.

Slusser, a transfer from Alabama, said in the proposal that she had no idea Fleming was born biologically male, but noticed she had “jumping ability and power that surpassed any girl on the team,” according to Outkick.

She began to overhear conversations between teammates about the player.

Slusser was even more shocked when Fleming asked to share a room with her during her volleyball outings.

After months of sharing a room, Fleming took his roommate aside and admitted to being transgender, Slusser said in the proposed addition to the lawsuit.

Slusser, several other women and women’s sports activist Riley Gaines are suing the NCAA for allowing Fleming to participate in Division I sports, Cowboy State Daily reported.

They argue that Fleming poses a risk to biological female athletes because the 6-foot-10 player hits too hard and has an unfair advantage.

Fleming currently ranks second on the team, with 103 kills and 118.5 points scored this season.

The NCAA has already countered an earlier version of the complaint, saying plaintiffs cannot file a sex discrimination claim against the organization because it is a rules-making body and not a state college, Cowboy State Daily reported.

The organization also said the women cannot penalize other state organizations for simply following NCAA rules.

Southern Utah University canceled its Sept. 14 game against the undefeated team, though it did not confirm it was because of Fleming, according to Cowboy State Daily.

The team told Outkick it only wants to play two conference games this weekend.

No other team has canceled a game against San Jose State, the team confirmed to Cowboy State Daily, declining to discuss Fleming’s gender.

DailyMail.com has reached out to Fleming, Slusser and SJSU head coach Todd Kress for comment.

The University of Wyoming – which is scheduled to play SJSU on Oct. 5 – recently discussed safety concerns with the team and decided to play the California team.

“No student-athletes have expressed any concerns about their safety,” UW spokesperson Chad Baldwin told Cowboy State Daily.

However, the views of individual team members and coaches “regarding fairness vary,” Baldwin said.

Slusser said she didn’t want Fleming to be bullied, but was concerned for her safety, according to Outkick.

“One thing that’s important in this case is really the physical safety issues in volleyball,” his attorney, Bill Bock, told Outkick.

“And that’s what they face in training every day. So this is a crazy, misguided policy that steals women’s athletic dreams and gives them to men, while putting women’s health and safety at risk.”

According to Outkick, Slusser and other members of the team often worried that Fleming’s power could cause a concussion if he was hit too hard.

The mother of an opposing player told Reduxx that her daughter has dealt with more injuries and physical strain than ever before and is constantly icing and rubbing her arms after blocking Fleming’s shots for two games.

“(She) was almost unstoppable at times. (She) jumped so high that I was afraid our blockers wouldn’t be able to defend against such a quick hit,” the mother said.

“Coincidentally, in both of these games, my daughter’s stats weren’t as good as they were in most of the other games. Her stats were drastically different because she was trying to compete with a boy who my daughter said stared at her after games and was extremely arrogant.”

Additionally, an SJSU teammate claimed the school told them they were forbidden from discussing Fleming’s biological sex outside of the team and that “things would go badly for the team members” if they did, Outkick said.

Slusser’s attorney said the player joined the lawsuit because she disagrees with the NCAA’s transgender eligibility rules and sees them as a barrier to the achievements of female athletes.

“The reason is that there are inherent physical differences between men and women. And those physical differences should be cause for celebration, but by allowing men who have vastly increased athletic opportunities and potential, based solely on biology, you prevent women from winning titles, gaining exposure and being acclaimed for their own unique physical abilities,” said Attorney Bock.

Marshi Smith of the Independent Council on Women’s Sports condemned the NCAA for “defrauding female athletes by withholding information about the true gender of a teammate or opponent,” as Slusser said she was never told during the recruiting process that a transgender athlete was on the team.

“Women don’t have the option to decide whether they want to face increased security risks on the field or share women’s locker rooms with men,” she told Reduxx.

“The NCAA’s reward system encourages cheating, resulting in financial and academic advantages for men at the expense of girls and young women in sports. This harmful practice must be stopped immediately.”

Tennessee Sen. Marsha Blackburn called Fleming’s participation “a slap in the face to every female athlete” in a Facebook post.

“Why does the NCAA claim it is ‘fair’ for biological males to compete against women?” she wrote.

“Just look at how hard and fast biological male Blaire Fleming of San Jose State hits this ball: unfair AND dangerous.”