The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit, a panel of several judges, heard oral arguments Tuesday in what could be a pivotal case on fairness for girls and women in athletics . The plaintiffs are four female athletes who allege in the lawsuit, which is now several years in the making, that when they were forced to compete against biological males in their high school track meets in Connecticut , they lost significant opportunities.

The Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference’s policy allows athletes to compete based on their gender identity, and the athletes allege that since they were bested by several male athletes, they lost out on awards and scholarships.

“Selina, Chelsea, Alanna, and Ashley — like all female athletes — deserve access to fair competition. The CIAC’s policy degraded each of their accomplishments and scarred their athletic records, irreparably harming each female athlete’s interest in accurate recognition of her athletic achievements,” said John Bursch, senior counsel and vice president of appellate advocacy at Alliance Defending Freedom, who represents the athletes and argued before the court Tuesday. “We urge the 2nd Circuit to set the record straight and allow these brave women to make their case under Title IX. This is imperative not only for the women who have been deprived of medals, potential scholarships, and opportunities, but also for all female athletes across the country.”

Last year, a three-judge panel ruled against the four athletes, saying that what happened to them did not amount to sufficient injury.

The female athletes’ odyssey began in 2017 when two biological males started competing against them in high school track, winning meets the female athletes had previously won, scooping up titles, awards, and accolades these four dedicated track stars previously had. One of the plaintiffs, Chelsea Mitchell, earned four championship titles until the biological males entered the races. She ultimately lost to them over 20 times. In all, the male athletes won 15 women’s track championship titles, titles only several females had won before.

Whatever happened to the progressive mantra that promises everyone equal protection? That’s only for certain categories of people. An 18-year-old female track star who shows up to practice every day and becomes one of the best in the state isn’t one of them.

“It’s hard to explain the feeling that no matter how talented you are, how hard you train, how much you practice, how much you want to win, you’ve already lost before the competition even begins,” Mitchell says in a video clip retelling what it’s like to lose to male athletes.

Stories like Mitchell’s abound: Riley Gaines and other incredible female athletes are shedding light on how it feels to be pushed out of competition in a race, a swimming pool, or a track meet by a biological male who often has recently decided to live as a female and wants to compete as such.

But this case, Soule v. Connecticut Association of Schools, is a unique lawsuit challenging rules Connecticut adopted, which reflect the unjust, unfair trends everyone is observing in sports nationwide.

Let’s hope that this time the court sees just how much damage is done when girls are not allowed to have fair play — when in fact, they are the ones who lack equal protection — and biological males are given preference. The boys, with their inherent advantages and physical prowess, regularly beat female athletes, proverbially pushing them off the first place pedestal, taking their medals, and earning their scholarships. It’s time for the court to act on fair play in a fair way.

Nicole Russell is a contributor to the Washington Examiner's Beltway Confidential blog. She is a journalist in Washington, D.C., who previously worked in Republican politics in Minnesota. She is an opinion columnist for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.