San Jose State Women’s Volleyball’s undefeated streak has officially ended. On October 3, Colorado State decisively defeated the Spartans in a 3-0 victory. While you’d think that tasting defeat after a historic 9 game-undefeated streak would devastate the team, SJSU’s coach was grateful. In fact, Todd Kress even wanted to thank the Rams’ coach, Emily Kohan.

“I walked up to Emily tonight, and I was like, ‘Should I say thank you for playing us?'” said Kress. That’s because Colorado State became the first team to play against SJSU after four teams forfeited. It all started with Southern Utah refusing to play against San Jose on September 14 at the Santa Clara Tournament. However, that was just the beginning.

Amid former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines’ accusations of hiding that one of the Spartans was a trans athlete and a lawsuit by an SJSU volleyball player, three others canceled their matches against the Spartans. “It’s not just us that are losing opportunities to play. It’s the people choosing not to play us, and that’s very unfortunate,” Todd Kress told Fox News Digital.

Following Riley Gaines’ explosive September 7 post on X, Spartans team member Brooke Slusser filed a lawsuit. Slusser filed her lawsuit as an addition to the Kentucky swimmer’s May 2024 Title IX lawsuit. Gaines, alongside a dozen other athletes, filed a lawsuit against the NCAA for violating Title IX by allowing trans athlete Lia Thomas to compete against biological women in 2022.

However, Brooke Slusser’s lawsuit came against SJSU and Blaire Fleming. Slusser’s lawsuit echoed Gianes’ safety concerns. After seeing her teammate hit “upwards of 80 mph” spikes, Slusser also expressed safety concerns. Now, Utah State has joined Southern Utah, Boise State, and Wyoming, to forfeit the upcoming contest with SJSU. Naturally, Coach Kress is distressed.

“These young women that have earned the right to step on the court and play,” the volleyball coach added. However, the head coach is going above and beyond to help his players. While the coach can’t influence the decisions of other universities, he’s trying to ensure the Spartans’ morale stays intact.

A volleyball coach and a father figure

Coach Todd Kress explained that he has been talking to the students to help them during this rough patch. During his conversation with Fox News Digital, the Spartans’ head coach spoke about his two boys. “I know that mental health is a real thing, and I know that my kids get through it,” confessed Kress. So he’s well aware of what the controversy and canceled games are doing to his athletes.

While admitting that Balire Fleming is at the center and getting the most “heat,” the others are in it too. So the volleyball coach isn’t prioritizing any one athlete over the other. Instead, he regularly talks to the entire team to help navigate through the controversy. Despite Wyoming walking back on their promise to play against the Spartans, the Colorado Rams proved that teams are willing to take on SJSU.

San Jose State is primed to take on San Diego State on October 10. While there’s no guarantee that the Mountain West Conference clash will see the light of day, SJSU needs to be at its best. And that’s exactly what Todd Kress is trying to achieve. Yet what do you think? Did the repeated cancellation lead to SJSU’s win streak snapping? Let us know in the comments.