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A girls’ high school volleyball team in California is bracing for two more forfeited games after other schools decided not to compete, the latest in a series of high-profile cancellations linked to a transgender athlete on the squad.

Maribel Munoz, mother of a player on Jurupa Valley High School’s girls’ volleyball team, confirmed the development to Fox News Digital after the coach, Liana Manu, emailed parents about the upcoming forfeits. Rim of the World High School and Orange Vista High School were to compete against Jurupa Valley on August 25 and August 29, respectively.

Jurupa Valley Unified School District (JUSD) issued a statement after the latest forfeits, making clear the decision was not its own. “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,” it said.

The district also said it is constrained by California law that prohibits student discrimination based on gender identity. Education Code 221.5 (f) requires schools to allow students to join athletic teams in a manner that is consistent with their gender identity, it noted, adding that the guidance is “supportive of California Attorney General Rob Bonta and State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond’s positions.”

“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 added. It said it is attempting to book additional games so that the athletes do not miss out on playing time.

The recent forfeits follow one by Riverside Poly High School earlier in the month. Riverside Poly parents and a local school board member told Fox News Digital that their August 15 cancellation was the result of the team’s transgender player, senior AB Hernandez, being on the squad.

In response to the growing controversy, Hernandez’s mother, Nereyda Hernandez, said in a statement she wants others to have an open mind and heart. “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.

Hernandez went on to explain that her daughter is petite and that what is different about her “is not her size or strength. It’s her skill.” She continued, “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. And while she knows about the forfeited games, she’s not aware that it’s because of her.”

The senior Hernandez has previously found herself in the national spotlight. During the spring track and field season, Hernandez won two California state titles, one in the long jump and the other in the triple jump. At the time, her victories prompted objections from female athletes and their families, many of whom donned “Save Girls’ Sports” shirts. The controversy even reached the highest office, with former President Donald Trump publishing a message on Truth Social ahead of the state finals encouraging California not to allow a trans athlete to compete, though he did not mention Hernandez by name.

In July, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the California Department of Education and the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) for its policy allowing transgender athletes to participate in girls’ sports, despite Trump signing an executive order in February that sought to ban it.

In Hernandez’s case, she is in her last volleyball season of high school and should be focused on competing, but instead, the season is becoming one defined by forfeits and an increasingly divided community.

Munoz, a Jurupa Valley parent whose daughter has played with Hernandez on the team for three years, told Fox News Digital that she was “disappointed” at the turn of events.

“It makes me feel sad, it makes me feel angry, frustrated, just so many emotions,” she said.

Riverside Unified School District has been another flashpoint for tension between the two groups, with one local school board meeting devolving into dueling parents. Riverside Poly parents on one side, supporting the athletes’ decision not to play, and those like Munoz, supporting transgender students’ rights, on the other.

Nereyda Hernandez was among those who addressed the Riverside board at the meeting, and specifically aimed at a board member named Amanda Vickers for previously speaking to Fox News Digital about the forfeit. “You actually entertained and welcomed harassment to my child,” she 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.”