College women's volleyball game featuring trans athlete draws crowd of protesters in California

A college volleyball game in California Wednesday night was hit by a crowd of protesters amid controversy over a transgender player on one of the teams. 

Santa Rosa Junior College faced Sierra College in Rocklin weeks after multiple Santa Rosa players filed a Title IX complaint about the school's handling of a biologically male teammate. Sierra won the game in straight sets.

One of the protesters, local women's sports activist Beth Bourne, handed out the protest signs to students who attended the game and said it was the first time she'd seen college students protest the issue in-person. 

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"This was the first time we experienced college students spectating the game, asking us if they could also hold a sign to show their support for the women. We have been at dozens of volleyball games, track meets, cross country races, and other sporting events with males, but this was the first time we saw this type of support. We are hopeful the tide is turning and more people feel comfortable speaking out on this injustice to women," Bourne told Fox News Digital. 

Bourne added that Sierra's men's athletes even joined in on the protesting. 

"We were unsure if the signs were allowed at the game, but we waited until a timeout was called before handing them to the young male athletes to hold. We had them out for less than a few minutes," she said. "We heard one young man from Sierra College say: ‘Yes, ma’am! Yes, ma’am!’ Then this group of young men asked her if they could also hold some of our signs.

"We left the game feeling very hopeful that more people are willing to speak out on behalf of these girls and women impacted by males in their sport." 

Fox News Digital has reached out to Santa Rosa and Sierra College for a response. 

Santa Rosa previously provided a statement addressing the initial Title IX complaint. 

California college students protest a transgender volleyball player at a women's game (Courtesy of Beth Bourne)

"Santa Rosa Junior College (SRJC) is committed to fostering an inclusive and supportive environment for all students and employees. The District complies with California Community College Athletic Association (3C2A) regulations, which govern student eligibility and participation in our athletic programs," the statement read. 

"We respect the legal privacy rights of all students and cannot discuss individual circumstances. What we can affirm is that SRJC takes all reports seriously and responds through established procedures."

Two of the female Santa Rosa athletes that signed the complaint, Madison Shaw and Gracie Shaw, told Fox News Digital about alleged physical harm caused by the trans teammate. 

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Madison alleged, last spring, she saw the trans athlete spike a ball in her teammate's face so hard, that it caused a concussion. 

"It had so much force and so much impact with my teammate's head that it resulted in a concussion, she was out for two weeks of her sophomore year, and she was upset. And obviously, injuries happen, it's inevitable, especially in a contact sport, but this one particularly could have been prevented by not having this male athlete on the team," Madison said. 

"She was telling me how infuriating (it was) because she didn't believe this athlete belonged on our team and now that she's suffering the consequences, it really bothered her. But, a majority of our team, unfortunately, doesn't see it the way we see it. They support the male athlete being on the team."

"Save Women's Sports" protesters at a women's volleyball game in California (Courtest of Beth Bourne)

Meanwhile, Gracie alleged she herself was struck in the head by one of the trans athlete's spikes. 

"I myself got hit in the face by this male athlete in practice in August. I was ready, I knew this male athlete was about to hit the ball, and I couldn't move out of the way and the ball spiked me in the face and it was way harder than any other hit that I'd gotten from the other female athletes on our team," Gracie said. 

"It did hurt pretty bad … it came at my face so fast I didn't even have time to react." 

The two women, alongside teammate Brielle Galli, filed their Title IX complaint against the school to the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights earlier this month, in consultation with the Independent Council for Women's Sports (ICONS). Their complaint alleged the school administrators retaliated against them when they spoke up, internally, in opposition to letting the trans athlete on the team.

"We've told our coach, our athletic director and our Title IX coordinator from the get-go that we want to play, we want to be part of this team, but we're not willing to take the court while a male athlete is on the team," Madison said. 

She added that the school administrators gave her a delayed response as to whether they would honor her request, and declined it. Then, when Madison prepared a speech to tell her teammates that she would stepping away from the team because of the trans athlete, her coach told her she "can't." 

"Our coach sends me a text saying ‘no, you can not tell the team your reasons for not taking the court, and we really need to respect the male athlete’s privacy," Madison said. 

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California has become a hotbed of national controversies involving trans athletes, specifically volleyball players, dating back to last year. The state's department of education is already being sued by the U.S. Department of Justice for its continued policies that allow biological males to compete in the girls' and women's categories in sports. 

At the NCAA Division I level, San Jose State University's women's volleyball team faced a controversy involving trans athlete Blaire Fleming last fall, which prompted a federal Title IX investigation into the school after President Donald Trump returned to office earlier this year. 

At the high school level, a trans athlete for Jurupa Valley High School girls' volleyball team has prompted two other players to step away from the team and file a lawsuit against the school district, while at least four opponents have forfeited games to the team.