San Jose State teammates dont feel safe anymore in transgender controversy after coach suspended: captain

San Jose State women’s volleyball players are angry and concerned for their safety after the Spartans’ assistant coach, Melissa Batie-Smoose, was suspended by the university amid the controversy over reports that redshirt senior Blaire Fleming is transgender, team co-captain Brooke Slusser said in an interview with OutKick.Batie-Smoose was suspended Saturday, less than two hours before the team’s match against New Mexico, after she filed a Title IX complaint earlier that week, claiming SJSU’s transgender-inclusion policy created a toxic environment for female athletes and accused the university of overtly showing favoritism for Fleming, according to a complaint obtained by Quillette.

Slusser — a junior starting setter, who was formerly roommates with Fleming — said she and her team are worried about who will protect their voice after Batie-Smoose’s suspension.“We aren’t happy and we don’t feel safe anymore,” Slusser said. “Melissa was that person that we felt like as long as she was there, we had someone that would stand up for us.

And now there’s no one there that will.” Todd Kress is the team’s head coach.Slusser, who previously spoke out about against Fleming after teams began forfeiting matches against SJSU, explained tensions are high within the team.“I don’t think the school sees how much they just basically ruined this program by taking Melissa away from us,” Slusser said.

“So, who knows what’s to come in the future [with regard] to what our team will do or how we will react from this.”Slusser recalled players getting a text to meet before Saturday’s match.“None of the coaching staff was at the meeting, it was just the players,” she said.“Some man from the university … sat our team down and said that [Coach Batie-Smoose] has been put on leave, will not be back and players were not supposed to reach out to her or speak to her at all.“As of right now, tensions are very high for my team with how angr...