A female field-hockey player was hospitalized after her teeth were reportedly knocked out by a shot from a male player during a high school game in Massachusetts, raising safety concerns about female athletes who share the field with men.
Bill Runey, Dighton-Rehoboth Regional School District superintendent, said that the Swampscott High School female player was seriously injured Thursday during a Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association playoff game against Dighton-Rehoboth Regional High School.
“Last night, a female field hockey player for the Dighton Rehoboth Regional High School girls’ field hockey team sustained significant facial and dental injuries when she was struck in the face by a shot in the third quarter versus Swampscott in an MIAA state playoff contest,” said Mr. Runey in a statement.
“The shot was taken by a male member of the Swampscott girls field hockey team. This injury required hospitalization,” he said. “The player, her family, teammates, and coaches remain in my prayers.”
After the female player was hit and fell to the ground, at least one girl could be heard screaming. Some girls looked distraught and held their hands to their mouths, as shown in a video clip posted online.
Mr. Runey, who told WCVB-TV that the girl lost two teeth, took aim at the association’s rule requiring schools to let boys play on girls’ teams if the same sport is not offered for boys, and vice versa.
“While I understand that the MIAA has guidelines in place for co-ed participation under section 43 of their handbook, this incident dramatically magnifies the concerns of many about player safety,” he said.
The MIAA cited the Massachusetts Equal Rights Amendment, a measure adopted in 1976 that forbids discrimination based on sex. The amendment was extended to scholastic sports in 1979.
“The court determined that a blanket rule prohibiting boys from playing on girls teams, where there was no equivalent boys team, violated the ERA,” said the MIAA in a statement.
“We respect and understand the complexity and concerns that exist regarding student safety. However, student safety has not been a successful defense to excluding students of one gender from participating on teams of the opposite gender,” said the MIAA. “The arguments generally fail due to the lack of correlation between injuries and mixed-gender teams.”
The male player whose shot hit the girl has not been identified as transgender. The state rule applies to all students, not just those who identify as the opposite sex.
Even so, the injury underscored health-and-safety concerns surrounding women and girls who increasingly find themselves competing with male-born athletes in the interest of transgender inclusion.
“Male field hockey player knocks the teeth out of a girl on the opposing team. This MUST end!!” tweeted the Independent Council on Women’s Sports [ICONS].
The organization, which advocates for single-sex sports, also fired a blast at NCAA President Charlie Baker, who reportedly lives in the Dighton area.
“Turn up the volume and listen to the screams NCAA President, @CharlieBakerMA,” ICONS tweeted.
Former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines tweeted that the game was held “where NCAA president and past gov, Charlie baker lives. Care to comment, @CharlieBakerMA?”
Mr. Runey said he understands that revising the Massachusetts ERA would be difficult, but that more needs to be done to ensure player safety.
“However, seeing the horror in the eyes of our players and coaches upon greeting their bus last night is evidence to me that there has to be a renewed approach by the MIAA to protect the safety of our athletes,” he said.
The male player who took the shot is a four-year varsity player and co-captain of the Dighton-Rehoboth team, and has “the exact same right to participate as any player on any team,” Swampscott High School athletic director Kelly Wolff told WCVB.
The incident drew comparisons to a 2022 North Carolina high school volleyball game in which player Payton McNabb suffered a concussion and neck injuries after being hit with a ball spiked by a transgender player on the other team.
“Allowing biological males to compete against biological females is dangerous,” she told a North Carolina legislative committee in April. “I may be the first to come before you with an injury, but if this [bill] doesn’t pass I won’t be the last.”
The legislature passed the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act, which requires players to compete based on birth sex. The bill was vetoed by Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, but his veto was overridden by the state legislature in August.
• Valerie Richardson can be reached at vrichardson@washingtontimes.com.