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A girls’ volleyball team in California lost two more games off its schedule on Tuesday after other schools decided to forfeit, the latest in an escalating controversy over the team’s roster, which includes a transgender athlete.

Maribel Munoz, a mother of a player on Jurupa Valley High School’s girls’ volleyball team, confirmed the forfeits to Fox News Digital after their coach, Liana Manu, alerted parents. The team was to play Rim of the World High School on Tuesday, Aug. 25, and Orange Vista High School on Saturday, Aug. 29.

Jurupa Valley Unified School District (JUSD) issued a statement on the forfeits, in which it noted it had no control over their scheduling. “We understand and acknowledge the disappointment of our Jurupa Valley High School athletes who are ready and prepared to play. Decisions to cancel matches were made by teams in other districts,” the statement said.

The district pointed out that it is following a California law that forbids discrimination based on gender identity. In the Education Code 221.5 (f), it states, “A school may not deny or limit the right of a student to participate in athletics on a team that is consistent with the student’s gender identity.”

Officials added that their position is supported by California Attorney General Rob Bonta and California State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond.

“We are proud of our JVHS Jaguars and their willingness to play any team and represent their school and our district with pride,” the district continued. The district said it is working to reschedule forfeited matches so students can play.

Jurupa Valley’s forfeits follow another withdrawal from Riverside Poly High School, which canceled an Aug. 15 game with the team. Parents of players at the school and one local school board member told Fox News Digital the move was because of Jurupa Valley’s transgender player, senior AB Hernandez.

Mother of Trans Athlete Speaks Out

Hernandez’s mother, Nereyda Hernandez, released a statement about the controversy. “I understand the discomfort some may feel, because I was once there, too. The difference is, I chose to learn, to grow, and to open my heart,” she said.

She said Hernandez is small, and what makes her stand out among her teammates “isn’t her size or strength, but her skill and dedication to the sport.” “This is a child, and I can assure you that she sees your daughters as peers, as teammates, as friends, not through a lens of anything inappropriate,” she continued. Nereyda Hernandez said her daughter had been unaware of the forfeits and why they were related to her playing.

This controversy is not the first time Hernandez’s name has appeared in national headlines. Last spring, she took two California state titles in long jump and triple jump during the track and field season. At that time, female athletes and their parents objected, some wearing “Save Girls’ Sports” shirts.

Former President Donald Trump made a post on his Truth Social platform before the state finals that encouraged California not to let a trans girl compete in events. Trump did not mention Hernandez by name in the post.

In July, the U.S. Department of Justice sued the California Department of Education and the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) for its policies that allow transgender students to play on girls’ teams. This was despite an executive order Trump signed in February that would ban their participation.

Hernandez is in her final year of playing high school volleyball. She has wanted nothing more than to play games this season. The attention and forfeits are becoming Hernandez’s story instead.

Munoz, whose daughter has played with Hernandez on the Jurupa Valley team for three years, is upset with how it has played out. “It makes me feel sad, it makes me feel angry, frustrated, just so many emotions,” Munoz said.

Parents have been clashing in local school board meetings, with one Riverside Unified School District session taking up the controversy. Supporters of the Riverside Poly athletes expressed gratitude for their refusal to play. Others said parents of transgender students were within their rights to have their children play.

During the meeting, Nereyda Hernandez criticized board member Amanda Vickers, who previously spoke to Fox News Digital about the forfeit. “You actually entertained and welcomed harassment to my child,” Hernandez said. “You are a board member. You have an oath to protect, to support all children, not just the ones that fit your ideas, your beliefs.”

She said the harassment and efforts to cancel games against transgender athletes are not by individuals with moral objections, but by religiously-based campaigns designed to pit parents against each other. “This has nothing to do with fairness in sports and everything to do with erasing transgender children,” she said.

Parents like Maria Carrillo expressed the opposite view, saying they were grateful to the Riverside Poly girls for standing their ground. “Poly girls, we stand with you. Keep fighting, because these parents who support their confused child are the problem,” Carrillo said.

The regular season for the Jurupa Valley volleyball team was expected to conclude in mid-October. The team could lose more games over forfeits, but now its athletes are stuck in the middle of a national controversy with no end in sight.

Trump recently issued a new attack against California over its policies. In a Truth Social post, he singled out Governor Gavin Newsom and said school districts in the state would lose federal funding if they did not follow his administration’s policies on transgender students.