Boise State made a surprising decision to drop out of the Mountain West women’s volleyball tournament on Wednesday night, even though they had earned a spot in the semifinals against San Jose State.
San Jose State, which had won six matches by forfeit this season due to other teams refusing to play against them, was already seeded second in the tournament and got a bye for the first round. Now, instead of playing on Friday, they’ll head straight to the championship match on Saturday.
Boise State released a statement saying, “Not continuing to play in the tournament was a tough choice. Our team fought hard, overcoming forfeits to make it this far, and they should not miss out on this opportunity while waiting for a better system that works for all athletes.”
San Jose State said they would share their response the next day.
This news came right after Boise State’s win over Utah State in the quarterfinals, where they won in four sets: 25-19, 18-25, 25-20, 25-23. However, Boise State didn’t immediately commit to playing the next match against San Jose State, leaving some confusion about why they pulled out. It’s unclear whether the decision was made by the team or the university.
Now, the championship match will likely still happen as planned, with San Jose State facing either Colorado State (the top seed) or San Diego State, who both played San Jose State this season instead of forfeiting.
This season, teams like Boise State, Wyoming, Utah State, Nevada, and Southern Utah all canceled their matches with San Jose State. Nevada’s players even made a statement saying they “refuse to participate in any match that goes against justice for female athletes,” though they didn’t explain further.
There’s also been some controversy off the court. Some players from different schools recently filed a lawsuit against the conference and San Jose State, saying a transgender player on the team shouldn’t be allowed to play in the tournament. A judge ruled that the player could play, and the decision was upheld by an appeals court.
San Jose State has not confirmed the player’s identity due to privacy laws, and the player has not spoken about it publicly. ESPN is also choosing not to name her.