Nevada Wolf Pack women’s volleyball captain Sia Li’ili’i has become the newest Independent Women’s Forum ambassador after leading the charge in her squad’s refusal to face a trans athlete on the San Jose State team this season.
Late last month, the Wolf Pack women’s volleyball team held a press conference to address their school’s reluctance to forfeit against San Jose State, a team clouded in controversy this season for having trans athlete Blaire Fleming on its roster.
Multiple players, including Li’ili’I, spoke about the situation on the day they were scheduled to face the Spartans, where the team captain broke down into tears the second she took the podium to say her piece.
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“When the news broke, I was stunned, as many of my teammates were. This is not what we signed up for,” an emotional Liilii said, referencing the program’s refusal to forfeit despite telling the athletic department they didn’t want to face Fleming and the Spartans weeks earlier.
“Our university had made a decision for us. They released a statement on our behalf saying we were going to play. We were not consulted. We were not given a voice, and we did not agree,” Liilii added, with fellow IWF ambassador Riley Gaines and former Hawai’I Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard in attendance.
“It hurt knowing our university was putting us in a position that could potentially hurt us. My teammates and I were very emotional, and I’m not sure, I cannot put into words how it feels to face something like this and knowing that we are all on our own.”
Now, Li’ili’I is continuing to help the initiative of protecting women’s spaces and sports by becoming an ambassador with the IWF.
“I am speaking up on this because men do not belong in women’s sports,” Li’ili’I said in a statement from the IWF. “As a Division 1 athlete, I have worked my whole life to live out my dreams of competing at this level. This is a dream I see in my nieces as they watch me play. I don’t want them to be faced with competing for a roster spot against a male with significant biological advantages. That is not fair!”
IWF president Carrie Lukas added: “We are thrilled to have Li’ili’i join our team. She has been such a brave and powerful advocate for women’s rights and common sense. This is the moment when we can win on this issue and ensure that our policies and laws protect women and girls — and with ambassadors like Li’ili’i, I know we will make it happen.”
IWF ambassadors have been proactive in sharing their voices and concerns regarding the current state of women’s sports, testifying before Congress about allowing biological males in women’s private spaces, as well as the dangers of the changes to Title IX.
Li’ili’I is a senior at Nevada, Reno where she had totaled 709 kills as an outside hitter over her four years at the university. She has 164 kills this season over 25 matches played.
Four other teams — Southern Utah, Boise State, Wyoming and Utah State — have all forfeited matches against SJSU this season as well.
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