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Girls’ volleyball team at a California high school had two more games scratched after opposing teams forfeited, the latest in an unfolding saga swirling around a transgender athlete on the squad.

Jurupa Valley High School parent Maribel Munoz confirmed the forfeits to Fox News Digital after a team coach, Liana Manu, sent a text to parents about additional upcoming cancellations. Opponents who scrapped games were Rim of the World High School, set for August 25, and Orange Vista High School, set for August 29.

In a statement to Fox News Digital, the Jurupa Valley Unified School District (JUSD) said it was not making the forfeits, however. “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 district’s statement read.

The district also noted it is required to follow California law that protects students from gender identity discrimination, according to Education Code 221.5 (f). The statute states schools must allow students to participate on athletic teams “in a manner that is consistent with the student’s gender identity.” District officials pointed out that the language mirrors guidance from California Attorney General Rob Bonta and 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 statement concluded. “Our Athletics Department is working hard to reschedule those matches so our athletes can play.”

The JUSD statement came after a forfeit last week from Riverside Poly High School, which scuttled a scheduled Aug. 15 game with Jurupa Valley. Parents of the Poly athletes and one local school board member confirmed to Fox News Digital that the decision was made in response to the team’s transgender athlete, senior AB Hernandez.

Mom of Trans Athlete Issues Statement as Feud Escalates

Hernandez’s mother, Nereyda Hernandez, released a statement following those forfeits, once again pleading for understanding and compassion. “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,” Hernandez said.

She noted her daughter is on the smaller side. “If you’re looking for someone on my daughter’s team who looks like your daughter, you won’t find that. My daughter is a small-statured young woman,” Hernandez said. “The reason she stands out is not her height, not her strength, but because she’s the best.”

The mother described the situation as hurting a child who has a right to play, asking for understanding. “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,” Hernandez explained. “She is also an 18-year-old child who has been put through so much during this process, and she was unaware that the games were forfeited because of her.”

Hernandez, 18, had previously been in the national spotlight over her track and field accomplishments. During the spring season, she took first in the state of California in the long jump and triple jump.

Female competitors and their parents, many of whom showed up wearing “Save Girls’ Sports” shirts, subsequently protested. Trump took notice, and ahead of the state finals, he posted a message on Truth Social, in which he said the California Department of Education “can’t allow a biological male to compete in girls’ High School Sports.” He did not mention Hernandez by name.

In July, the Justice Department filed a lawsuit against the California Department of Education and the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF), related to its policies that allow transgender girls to compete on girls’ teams. This occurred despite a Trump administration executive order in February that sought to bar such participation.

The focus for Hernandez this year, she has said, should have been on playing volleyball. That sport, her third, is her last opportunity to play at the high school level. But the start of the season is instead being defined by forfeits and growing divides in the community.

Jurupa Valley parent Munoz, who has had a daughter on the volleyball team with Hernandez for the past three years, was exasperated with where the controversy has gone. “It makes me feel sad, it makes me feel angry, frustrated, just so many emotions,” she said.

The dispute has extended to school board meetings. A recent Riverside Unified School District board meeting featured parents on both sides of the issue. Riverside parents of the players who sat out the game spoke in support of the Poly athletes. In contrast, a parent who is also a transgender parent spoke in support of the right for all students, including trans ones, to play.

Nereyda Hernandez also raised questions about a Riverside board member during the meeting. In statements to Fox News Digital in recent weeks, Riverside board member Amanda Vickers also spoke to Fox News Digital about the forfeit. “You actually entertained and welcomed harassment to my child,” Nereyda Hernandez said of Vickers at the meeting. “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.”