Boise State withdraws from MW volleyball tournament ahead of San Jose State game

Hannah Parcells, Managing Editor

November 28, 2024

Collegian | Ava Puglisi

Malaya Jones (1) spikes the ball over the net scoring a point for Colorado State University during their game against San Jose State University Oct. 3. CSU won 3-0.

Boise State volleyball pulled out of the Mountain West women’s volleyball tournament Wednesday night, forfeiting its spot in the semi finals against San Jose State.

Boise State’s decision to withdraw from the tournament comes after a judge ruled Monday to reject a request to block a San Jose State player who has been accused of being transgender from competing in the tournament. A federal court of appeals upheld the ruling Tuesday.

This is the third time this season that the Broncos have forfeited a match against the Spartans, following two regular season games that Boise State boycotted in protest of the alleged transgender San Jose State player.

San Jose State received six forfeit victories during conference play because of opponents boycotting matches and is seeded second in the tournament behind Colorado State. The Spartans received a first-round bye and will advance directly to the championship match on Saturday as result of Boise State’s withdrawal.

No. 6 Boise State beat No. 3 Utah State in four sets (25-19, 18-25, 25-20, 25-23) Wednesday, just hours before Boise State announced its withdrawal from the tournament.

”The decision to not continue to play in the 2024 Mountain West Volleyball Championship tournament was not an easy one,” Boise State said in a statement released Wednesday. “Our team overcame forfeitures to earn a spot in the tournament field and fought for the win over Utah State in the first round on Wednesday. They should not have to forgo this opportunity while waiting for a more thoughtful and better system that serves all athletes.”

Boise State is one of five schools in total that have boycotted matches against San Jose State this season, including Southern Utah, Utah State, Wyoming and Nevada.

Current and former Mountain West volleyball players – many of whom are from the schools that forfeited matches this season – filed a lawsuit in Colorado against the Mountain West Conference and San Jose State officials Nov. 13 alleging that the conference policy on transgender participation violates Title IX.

No. 1 Colorado State is scheduled to play No. 5 San Diego State in a semi finals match Friday to determine who will face off against San Jose State in Saturday’s championship. Both teams elected to play San Jose State during regular season matches rather than forfeit, so it is unlikely that either team would withdraw should they make it to the championship.

Reach Hannah Parcells at sports@collegian.com or on Twitter @hannahparcells.

About the Contributor

Hannah Parcells, Content Managing Editor

Hannah Parcells is incredibly proud to step into the role of content managing editor at The Collegian for the 2024-25 school year. Parcells is currently pursuing two degrees: a Bachelor of Science in psychology and a Bachelor of Arts in political science with a concentration in global politics. Stubborn, opinionated and endlessly curious, Parcells has always been passionate about understanding and helping other people, and she hopes to use her education to leave the world a little better than she found it. Born into an Air Force family, Parcells spent her youth exploring the Great Plains and developed a deep love of all things nature. When she wasn’t exploring the world at her fingertips, Parcells often had her nose stuck in a book, which is how she discovered her love of science, history and, above all, a good story. Parcells stumbled headfirst into The Collegian in fall 2023 as a reporter when she transferred to Colorado State University and a friend recommended it due to her passion for writing. She fell in love with chasing down stories and became the news editor at the end of her first semester. Parcells strongly believes in the power of information and is committed to upholding The Collegian’s long history of honest reporting and encouraging readers to get out and explore the world around them. On the off chance she’s not buried in textbooks, research papers or policy analyses, Parcells can be found on a hike, listening to music or at any local bookstore or coffee shop, feeding her ongoing addiction to both caffeine and good books.

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