CSUB Hit with Explosive Lawsuit Filed by Two Former Softball Players

The fallout at Cal State Bakersfield continues as two former softball players filed a lawsuit against the school and coaches. | CSUB Athletics

The fallout at California State University Bakersfield took another turn on Tuesday night when two former softball players filed a lawsuit against the university, the Board of Trustees for California State University, and former assistant coach James Davenport.

The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, identifies the plaintiffs as V.S. and J.R. to protect their privacy due to their claims of sexual harassment, abuse, and assault allegations.

University president Vernon B. Harper Jr. responded to the lawsuit in an email to the Bakersfield community on Wednesday evening.

"I want to inform you of a lawsuit (case number 25STCV2935Q) that was filed in Los Angeles County on Oct. 7, 2025, by two former members of the CSU Bakersfield softball program," Harper writes. "The lawsuit names CSU Bakersfield, the CSU Board of Trustees, and a former softball coach as defendants.

"We take the concerns raised by current and former students seriously and will fully cooperate in the legal proceedings. As CSUB reviews the filing, we pledge to be open and transparent throughout the process and provide more information when we are able to do so, in accordance with privacy laws in place to protect current and former students.

"Our mission and focus remain on providing a safe and welcoming space for our students, where they can flourish and thrive through the power of education.

"As I said in my note to this community yesterday, I am committed to sharing information with you as it becomes available in the spirit of open and honest communication."

In March, Davenport and head coach Letty Olivarez were placed on leave after former player Violet Salazar made a series of TikTok videos alleging similar behavior to the lawsuit. The videos have been deleted.

Davenport denied the allegations in an exclusive interview with Softball On SI and said the allegations were brought forward to cover up a relationship between Salazar and former men's basketball coach Kevin Mays.

On Sept. 8, Mays was arrested and faced 11 criminal charges, including felony charges related to pimping and pandering, the possession of illegal firearms, including that of an assault weapon, and the possession of methamphetamine and marijuana for purposes of sale. 

The Kern County District Attorney’s Office also added two felony counts for the possession of child pornography. Bakersfield police investigators say they discovered over 3,000 files encrypted on cloud storage accounts belonging to Mays. No one else has been charged while the investigation continues.

Olivarez is still on paid leave and Davenport is no longer employed by the university.

Have you read this yet? Because this story is wild.
What’s happening with Cal State Bakersfield Softball is one of the craziest things I've covered in a while.

What are your thoughts? https://t.co/BReVeTsaPN

— Maren Angus-Coombs (@Maren_Angus) October 6, 2025

In response to Softball On SI's story published on Oct. 2, Harper released a statement denying the claims from Davenport.

"The most damaging falsehood must be corrected at once: At no time did CSUB ignore allegations of criminal activity against any coach, employee, or student of this organization," Harper wrote.
"All accusations of criminal activity stemming from investigations of the Athletics Program were reported to outside law-enforcement agencies, including the Bakersfield Police Department, Kern County District Attorney’s Office, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation."

“In February of this year, allegations of criminal activity and workplace misconduct against former men’s assistant basketball coach Kevin Mays were reported to CSUB in the course of a larger investigation of the softball program,” Harper added. “University officials immediately conducted thorough interviews with nearly two dozen current and former students, parents and employees and found no substantiating evidence of criminal activity or misconduct by Mr. Mays. At no time during the primary softball investigation were allegations related to human trafficking or child pornography ever made.”