San Jose State University has acknowledged a recent mass exodus of
volleyball players who entered the transfer portal after a controversy-
riddled season involving a trans athlete on the team.

The university provided a statement to Fox News Digital in which it
expressed "respect" for the recent wave of players who have opted to
transfer. "Student athletes have the ability to make decisions about their
college athletic careers, and we have the utmost respect for that," the
statement read.

The San Francisco Chronicle reported that seven of the team's players have
entered the transfer portal.

The seven players who are transferring will be leaving the team after a
season that included eight forfeited matches, regular police protection,
national scrutiny and internal turmoil between players and coaches. One
player even received threats of physical harm amid the controversy.

Head coach Todd Kress even spoke about how the 2024 season was one of the
"most difficult" of his life after the team's loss in the conference final
to Colorado State, in a statement provided to Fox News Digital.

"This has been one of the most difficult seasons I�ve ever experienced,
and I know this is true as well for many of our players and the staff who
have been supporting us all along. Maintaining our focus on the court and
ensuring the overall safety and well-being of my players amid the external
noise have been my priorities," Kress said.

The transgender player, Blaire Fleming, is out of eligibility after
completing a fourth collegiate season in 2024. The team's season ended in
the Mountain West Conference championship game after it advanced to the
title game by virtue of a forfeit from Boise State in the semifinal round.
Boise State previously forfeited two regular season games to San Jose
State amid the controversy involving Fleming, accounting for three of its
seven conference wins via forfeit this year.

A loss to Colorado State in the conference final ended the season and
prevented the controversy from slipping into the NCAA tournament. The loss
effectively ended Fleming's collegiate career.

In September, co-captain Brooke Slusser joined a lawsuit against the NCAA
alleging the program withheld knowledge about Fleming's birth gender from
her and other players on the team. Slusser alleged she was made to share
changing and sleeping spaces with Fleming without knowing that Fleming was
a biological male.

Slusser, along with several other players in the Mountain West, filed a
separate lawsuit against the conference and San Jose State in November
over Fleming's presence. That lawsuit included testimony from former San
Jose State volleyball players Alyssa Sugai and Elle Patterson alleging
they were passed over for scholarships in favor of Fleming.

That lawsuit also alleges that San Jose State players spoke up about an
alleged scheme by Fleming to have Slusser spiked in the face with a
volleyball in a game against Colorado State on Oct. 3. Slusser was not
spiked in the face in that game, and an investigation by the Mountain West
concluded without finding sufficient evidence of the alleged plot.

Assistant coach Melissa Batie-Smoose was suspended by the program in early
November after she filed a Title IX complaint against the university for
showing favoritism toward Fleming over the other players, especially
Slusser. Batie-Smoose's complaint also included allegations of Fleming's
plot to have Slusser spiked in the face.

Slusser previously told Fox News Digital that Batie-Smoose's dismissal
severely impacted the morale of the team.

"After we found out that she was released, a lot of the team just kind of
broke down and was kind of freaking out, and even one of my teammates was
like, �I don�t feel safe anymore,' because there's no one now that we feel
like we can go and talk to about our concerns or our actual feelings and
can actually speak freely in front of," Slusser said.

Slusser added that she and other players lost trust in the coaches,
including head coach Kress.

"You can't truly voice how you're feeling without them just trying to
cover it up or act like it's all OK. With Melissa, you could voice how you
felt, and she could comfort you and validate your feelings and at least
make you feel heard compared to the other coaches," Slusser said.

Kress also blamed the team that forfeited for igniting backlash against
his team, as each forfeit brought about more controversy and media
attention.

"Sadly, others who for years have played this same team without incident
chose not to play us this season. To be clear, we did not celebrate a
single win by forfeiture. Instead, we braced for the fallout. Each
forfeiture announcement unleashed appalling, hateful messages individuals
chose to send directly to our student-athletes, our coaching staff and
many associated with our program."

However, these issues did not stop the players from at least having some
fun on what was their final road trip as San Jose State Spartans for most
of them.

Slusser previously told Fox News Digital that the team went out to a magic
show together when they traveled to Las Vegas for the Mountain West
tournament, and even had a team Thanksgiving meal together at the team
hotel with takeout from a local diner with many of their families.

However, that was not enough to keep the seven players who have entered
the transfer portal attached to the program, as the team will be facing a
major roster turnover as it looks to rebound on the court and in its
reputation in 2025.

https://www.foxnews.com/sports/sjsu-responds-volleyball-player-mass-
exodus-after-trans-athlete-controversy-plagues-program