Girls’ Basketball Team Faces Transgender Opponent as School Disregards Trump Order

A basketball goes through a hoop in a file photo. Nicolas Tucat/AFP/Getty Images

A Christian high school girl’s basketball team is facing a team that includes a male athlete who identifies as a female in a playoff game scheduled for Feb. 22.

The game is occurring under the backdrop of an investigation into the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF), the state’s governing body for high school sports, by the U.S. Department of Education and its Office of Civil Rights.

The Education Department said the investigation is a result of CIF’s “publicly announced plans to violate federal antidiscrimination laws related to girls’ and women’s sports,“ which includes ”the possibility of allowing male athletes to compete in women’s sports and use women’s intimate facilities.”

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Feb. 5 that directs an end to men playing in women’s sports, or risk federal funding.

The Saturday playoff is between Cornerstone Christian School and San Francisco Waldorf, both private high schools in the Bay Area.

The San Francisco team includes player Henry Hanlon, a male who identifies as a female. Hanlon is a high school senior and also played for the school’s girls’ volleyball and soccer teams.

Cornerstone Christian School told The Epoch Times in an email Thursday: “As a school, we are committed to upholding biblical principles in all of our decisions and actions. While we may not agree with or support the transgender movement, we firmly believe in the biblical call to love our neighbors as ourselves.”

The school added that it hopes the match will be “an opportunity for sportsmanship” and allow students to “extend compassion, respect, and grace to all individuals, regardless of their beliefs or identities.”

The Epoch Times reached out to San Francisco Waldorf’s athletic department for comment.

Previously, Stone Ridge Christian High School forfeited a Nov. 16, 2024, girl’s volleyball match against Waldorf, citing a conflict regarding religious belief in playing against Hanlon.

“We do not believe sex is changeable and we do not intend to participate in events that send a different message. We also have a duty and responsibility to care for the health and safety of our athletes,” Stone Ridge Christian said in a statement.

After Trump’s executive order, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) revised its transgender athlete policy, which now restricts the women’s sports category to “student-athletes assigned female at birth.”

According to USA Facts, a nonprofit that analyzes government data, 13.9 percent of funding for California public schools comes from the federal government. In the 2021–22 school year, schools received roughly $16.8 billion, which comes out to $2,859 per student in federal funds. The national average is $2,536 per student.

Californian lawmakers remain divided on Trump’s executive order.

Democratic state lawmakers, who make up the majority in the Legislature, are working to approve $50 million in emergency funds for filing lawsuits against federal actions.

State Assembly Democrats said in a statement that the funds will help “protect our economy, vulnerable Californians and immigrant workers in the face of threats from the White House and Republicans in Washington.”

Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers are introducing bills to address transgender policy on the state level.

“We know the state of California is going to do everything it can to resist and avoid compliance with federal law, so it’s our role to try to force change here at the state and local level.” Assemblyman Bill Essayli said during a Feb. 14 press conference.

Assemblywoman Kate Sanchez on Jan. 7 also introduced a bill to ban male athletes from competing in female sports.

Toward the end of 2024, San Jose State University made headlines for adding a transgender player to its women’s volleyball team, resulting in some college teams forfeiting their games.

San Jose State team cocaptain Brooke Slusser told The Epoch Times at the time, “A lot of people don’t agree with it, just because of the major power difference and strength difference; it’s not safe.”