By james art Saturday’s Mountain West Conference women’s volleyball match between Nevada and San Jose State has been moved from Reno, Nev., to San Jose, Calif., the schools said in a joint statement.
“The decision to relocate the game was made in the best interest of both programs and the well-being of the student-athletes, coaches, athletic staff and spectators,” the statement said. “The decision was made with the approval of the Mountain West Conference.”
The move comes after Nevada athletes said they would not play against San Jose State.
Nevada volleyball captain Sia Lilii told the Reno Gazette Journal on Oct. 15 that the team would not play because of concerns about reports that a transgender player was on San Jose’s team.
San Jose State has not commented on the gender of any player on its team and said it complies with all NCAA and Mountain West Conference policies.
The university told RGJ on Monday that the team still planned to travel to Nevada unless something changed.
“At this time, unless something changes, SJSU volleyball plans to travel to Nevada for the scheduled match so as not to risk our team losing,” said Michelle Smith McDonald, San Jose State senior director of media relations.
Nevada remains adamant that it cannot legally cancel the game, but supports the decision of players who choose not to play.
With the venue change, Nevada will forfeit the game that did not appear on Saturday.
Four colleges have declined to play San Jose State: Boise State, Southern Utah, Utah State and Wyoming.
This article originally appeared in the Reno Gazette Journal: Nevada volleyball game moved to San Jose, Mountain West says