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A California girls’ high school volleyball team is slated to have not just one or two, but two more games scratched from their schedules this summer, amid a fight over a transgender athlete on the roster.

Maribel Munoz, mother of one of the players on the Jurupa Valley High School girls’ volleyball team, confirmed to Fox News Digital that two more matches were called off on the heels of two earlier forfeits, following an interview with the coach, Liana Manu, in which she alerted parents to the cancellations. Those games were to have been against Rim of the World High School on Aug. 25 and Orange Vista High School on Aug. 29.

Jurupa Valley Unified School District (JUSD) also stated the latest forfeits. In it, they made clear that the matches were not being called off by the district. “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 said.

JUSD noted that, as a matter of state law in California, it is prohibited from discriminating against students based on gender identity. “Education Code 221.5 (f) is very clear and states that schools should ‘allow students to participate on an athletic team that is consistent with their gender identity. ‘” The district noted that this was consistent with positions of both California Attorney General Rob Bonta and California 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 district added, and said it was working on finding replacement games so that the athletes would not lose additional opportunities to play.

Those forfeits were among at least three this year after Riverside Poly High School opted to cancel a game scheduled against Jurupa Valley for Aug. 15. Parents of the players as well as a Riverside Unified School District board member, separately told Fox News Digital the cancellation was over the inclusion of a transgender athlete on the team, senior AB Hernandez.

In response to the growing backlash, Hernandez’s mother, Nereyda Hernandez, put out a statement of her own. “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 wrote.

Nereyda Hernandez said her daughter is petite and that when it comes to volleyball, it is not her size that sets her apart, but her skill.

“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,” she added. Hernandez’s mother said her daughter did not even know the team had called off their game because of her participation.

Hernandez, who is entering her senior season, has been in the national spotlight before. During the spring track and field season, she won two California state titles, long jump and triple jump, attracting the ire of other female athletes and their parents, many of whom wore “Save Girls’ Sports” shirts to the competition. Former President Donald Trump even sent out a post on Truth Social ahead of the California state finals, calling on the state not to allow a trans athlete to compete in the event. He did not name Hernandez.

In July, the U.S. Department of Justice sued the California Department of Education and the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) over the policy that allows transgender athletes to compete on girls’ teams. This was despite the Trump administration having signed an executive order in February that would bar such participation.

For Hernandez and the team, the season should be all about volleyball. Instead, it will be defined by forfeits and a community divided.

Munoz, a Jurupa Valley parent whose daughter has played alongside Hernandez for the past three years, said she was disgusted by how the situation was playing out. “It makes me feel sad, it makes me feel angry, frustrated, just so many emotions,” Munoz told Fox News Digital.

Parents on both sides of the issue have made appearances at school board meetings in the district. At a Riverside Unified School District meeting, some parents of the Riverside Poly athletes said they supported the decision not to play, while other parents spoke to the importance of allowing transgender athletes to play.

At that meeting, Nereyda Hernandez went after Riverside board member Amanda Vickers for speaking to Fox News Digital about the Aug. 15 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.”