Two female high-school track stars have called out officials after being forced to compete against a biological male rival for the third year in a row. On Saturday, transgender student athlete and Jurupa Valley senior AB Hernandez finished first in three jumping events, despite protests from 'Save Girls Sports', who accused California Governor Gavin Newsom of abandoning girls in the state.
Hernandez's Performance
Hernandez took the triple jump title at 42ft 4in, beating the nearest competition at the CIF Southern Section Division 3 preliminaries by several feet. Her long jump of 20ft, 4 1/4in was better than any other competitor by more than a foot. She then tied for first in the high jump at 5ft 2in with Crean Lutheran High School's Reese Hogan, who has some history with Hernandez.
Reese Hogan's Reaction
After finishing second to her Jurupa Valley rival at a CIF event in 2025, Hogan was pictured standing atop the podium, where Hernandez had stood moments earlier. The photo of Hogan in the 'first place' position quickly went viral. In the days that followed, Hogan, who spoke at the protest prior to the events, described her 'disappointment' with officials.
'This is my third year competing against a transgender athlete, and last year I was stripped away of a CIF Title. I basically worked my whole career to get to that point. It's just really disappointing to go into a competition knowing you already lost,' Hogan told Fox News Digital during an emotional interview.
Call to Action
During the protest, Hogan called out Gavin Newsom for his lack of action. She said: 'I'm here to stand up for girls in girls sports and to call out CIF and the state of California for their poor leadership and lack of support for female athletes. The recent statements coming from Governor Gavin Newsom's office have made it clear that they have no intention of creating a safe, fair and equitable environment for female high school athletes.'
'The Governor himself has admitted that males competing in women's sports is unfair yet nothing is being done to protect girls who train everyday to compete on a level playing field. I am here today to compete and to win. The situation motivates me to work even harder but at the same time I know there's a strong possibility that this male athlete will win all three titles.'
Teammate's Perspective
Hogan's Crean Lutheran teammate, Olivia Viola, also addressed the matter. 'I haven't heard nearly enough adults come out and say anything. A lot of them like to say that they agree with you, that they're proud of you for speaking up now, but they won't do it themselves. Just because it doesn't affect every adult out there doesn't mean it's not worth standing up for,' Viola said.
Governor's Office Response
A source at Governor Gavin Newsom's office provided a statement defending the current rules, citing a 2013 law that requires students to participate in sports consistent with their gender identity. 'The Governor has said discussions on this issue should be guided by fairness, dignity, and respect. He rejects the right wing's cynical attempt to weaponize this debate as an excuse to vilify individual kids. The Governor's position is simple: stand with all kids and stand up to bullies. California is one of 22 states that have laws requiring students be permitted to participate in sex-segregated school sports consistent with their gender identity. California passed this law in 2013 (AB 1266) and it was signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown.'
Viola rejected the labelling of those opposed to the trans athlete's participation as 'bullies'. She said: 'I think his statement is manipulative, and it's just completely untrue. He's saying stand up for all kids, yet he's essentially trying to silence us. These girls are not bullies. We make a point to say we are not against any individual athlete, we are against California's policies. We believe athletes deserve dignity and respect, and that's why we believe women deserve the dignity of having their own category.'
Protests and Broader Impact
Save Girls Sports outreach director and former NCAA soccer player Sophia Lorey told the crowd outside the meet that the presence of transgender athletes in girls sports will result in lost scholarship opportunities. Citing the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) bylaw allowing participation based on gender identity, Lorey claimed 'girls across California will continue losing placements, safety and opportunities that they rightfully earned.'
During the protest, Hogan told the crowd: 'What has been more frustrating is the silence from CIF. They have never responded to me, acknowledged my concerns and never listen to the female athletes who directly have been affected by these decisions.' The Daily Mail has approached the CIF for comment.
The uproar follows a lawsuit launched by the Department of Justice last July against California state agencies regarding alleged Title IX violations linked to the same athlete's previous victories. The U.S. Department of Education has since expanded that investigation to include 17 other institutions for potential civil rights breaches across the state.
