Mountain West closes investigation into allegations towards San Jose State trans participant with out self-discipline

The Mountain West Convention says it carried out an investigation into conspiracy allegations by gamers on San Jose State and Colorado State’s volleyball groups and closed it with out taking disciplinary motion. 

In a letter addressed to San Jose State athletic director Jeff Konya and Colorado State athletic director John Weber, obtained by Fox Information Digital, Mountain West Commissioner Gloria Nevarez says the convention didn’t discover enough proof of claims in a latest Title IX grievance. 

The grievance alleged San Jose State transgender participant Blaire Fleming conspired with a Colorado State participant to affect the result of a match and to hit Fleming’s teammate, Brooke Slusser, within the face with a ball throughout that match. 

The letter didn’t deal with allegations in a latest lawsuit, nor did it deal with the notion there was a conspiracy to have Slusser hit within the face. The letter refers to all of the allegations listed within the grievance as “manipulation of the competitors.”

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Colorado State College Police behind the San Jose State College Spartans’ bench monitor Moby Area throughout an NCAA Mountain West ladies’s volleyball sport between the Spartans and the Colorado State Rams in Fort Collins, Colo., Oct. 3, 2024. (Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle by way of Getty Pictures)

“The grievance included allegations volleyball gamers from Colorado State College (CSU) and San José State College (SJSU) conspired to have interaction in manipulation of the competitors throughout a SJSU vs. CSU volleyball match performed October 2, 2024, in Fort Collins, Colorado. Upon receipt of this info, the Mountain West Convention workplace, in coordination with each member establishments, instantly initiated an intensive investigation into these severe assertions,” the letter stated. 

Nevarez says the convention’s investigation included interviews with head coaches and student-athletes initiated by each establishments. Nevertheless, the letter doesn’t particularly state which people had been interviewed. Fox Information Digital has reached out to the convention for readability on that listing of people however has not acquired a response. 

The convention additionally claims its investigation included a assessment of the match video by each head coaches, assessment of the match video and statistical evaluation by a number of third-party volleyball consultants engaged by the convention and a number of interviews carried out by a third-party investigator engaged by the convention in session with the Mountain West’s authorized counsel.

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The convention claims any proof to again the claims was inadequate. Nevertheless, the letter doesn’t explicitly state that the allegations are false. 

“Upon assessment and analysis of the in depth info gathered in the course of the investigation, there’s inadequate proof to corroborate the allegations of misconduct associated to the SJSU vs. CSU volleyball competitors performed October 2, 2024. Because of this, the Convention workplace has decided no disciplinary motion is warranted and considers this matter closed,” it stated. 

The preliminary Tile IX grievance was filed by suspended San Jose State assistant head coach Melissa Batie-Smoose Oct. 29. Batie-Smoose was suspended shortly after the grievance was filed, to the dismay of Slusser and different gamers on the staff. 

Brooke Slusser is a junior at San Jose State College who performs volleyball and has joined a lawsuit towards the NCAA. (San Jose State athletics)

Batie-Smoose, Slusser and different present and former gamers on the staff and throughout the Mountain West filed a lawsuit towards the convention and San Jose State that supplied additional context on the allegations. 

San Jose State volleyball participant Chandler Manusky is cited within the lawsuit recounting an incident in early October, when she and different teammates, together with the trans athlete, violated staff guidelines by sneaking out of a staff resort the evening earlier than a match towards Colorado State. Manusky claimed to have then discovered about an alleged plan by participant Blaire Fleming to make sure San Jose State would lose the match and arrange Colorado State participant Malaya Jones to spike Slusser within the face throughout a match Oct. 3. 

“Manusky stated that at Jones’ residence Fleming had shared with Jones the scouting for the CSU-FC sport and so they had mentioned Fleming ‘throw[ing] the sport’ and the way they’d arrange Jones to ‘blow up’ Slusser and ‘blast’ her within the face in the course of the sport,” court docket paperwork stated. 

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“Manusky additionally stated that Fleming acknowledged, ‘I’m going to depart middle court docket open,’ which might permit Malaya Jones to have a wide-open shot to attempt to ‘blow up Slusser,’ i.e., to attempt to hit Brooke Slusser within the face with the ball.”

The paperwork allege Manusky confronted head coach Todd Kress and Batie-Smoose concerning the incident. Manusky claims she was crying as she begged them to not inform Fleming she had come ahead with the story. 

“Kress advised Batie-Smoose he didn’t imagine Manusky and thought she had made up your complete story so she wouldn’t get in hassle for leaving the staff resort,” the paperwork stated. 

Slusser beforehand advised Fox Information Digital in an unique interview she was made conscious of Fleming’s alleged plan and believes she has been handled unfairly by the college, arguing the college has not achieved sufficient to analyze the matter. 

Colorado State College Police behind the San Jose State College Spartans’ bench monitor Moby Area throughout an NCAA Mountain West ladies’s volleyball sport between the Spartans and the Colorado State Rams in Fort Collins, Colo., Oct. 3, 2024. (Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle by way of Getty Pictures)

“If this was me, and I used to be the one threatening to do that to my teammate who’s brought about a lot commotion, there would have been motion taken instantly,” Slusser stated. “I used to be positively very indignant, and I used to be glad at first to know that it was already made conscious to the teaching workers and compliance and everybody, however I do not know if that made me really feel any in another way. I used to be simply indignant as a result of I did not suppose somebody would go to those lengths.

“Threatening to wish to harm certainly one of your individual teammates, I simply really feel like there’s so many issues in that complete dialog that will make a college wish to get it handled.” 

San Jose State beat Colorado State Saturday Within the first match for the reason that lawsuit was filed. Fleming had the game-winning serve and was swarmed by the opposite Spartan gamers in celebration, together with Slusser and Manusky. 

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