Minnesota Softball Players Are Furious After Judge Rules in Transgender Pitcher Case
A federal judge in Minnesota has ruled after three anonymous female athletes, who competed against a transgender pitcher, filed a lawsuit.
United States District Judge Eric Tostrud threw out the case on Sept. 19 and has left the three anonymous players furious and frustrated. Tostrud was appointed by President Donald Trump in 2018.
The plaintiffs spoke to Fox News Digital, with one of them saying the decision was "upsetting" and "frustrating."
Tostrud's dismissal was a result of the plaintiff's attorneys having "not shown as a factual matter that bylaw-created disparities are sufficiently substantial to deny its members ‘effective accommodation’ or ‘equal treatment’ as those concepts are defined under Title IX."
The three athletes sued Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, Minnesota State High School League Executive Director Erich Martens, Minnesota Department of Human Rights Commissioner Rebecca Lucero, and Minnesota Commissioner of Education Willie Jett.
Who is Marissa Rothenberger
Marissa Rothenberger is the player who has been called into question as a transgender.
Rothenberger led Champlin Park High School in Minnesota to a Class 4A state championship in a 6-0 win over Bloomington-Jefferson. The right-hander pitched a complete-game shutout, limiting the opponent to just three hits.
During the postseason run, Rothenberger surrendered only one earned run in 35 innings of work and struck out 27. At the plate, Rothernberger went 5-for-16 with two doubles, three runs batted in, and a run scored.
Rothernberger's final stats for the season were impressive, with a 0.74 earned run average, a 0.65 WHIP, and a .176 batting average against across 94 innings of work.
And that’ll do it - Champlin Park wins the Class 4A Minnesota state softball championship, beating Bloomington Jefferson 6-0.
— Amber Harding Snyder (@TheAmberHarding) June 6, 2025
Marissa Rothenberger pitched a complete-game shutout and gave up only 3 hits. pic.twitter.com/4uS7aSejqS
Previous Complaints Warned of ‘Unfair Advantage’
"Hitting against him is not only a physical challenge but a mental, too," one of the plaintiffs told Fox News Digital on anonymity. "It’s a mental battle knowing that he has an advantage in the sport that I grew up playing, making it hard to even want to hit against him," the player said.
"His ability to get outs and spin the ball is a strong advantage, but, like I said, it’s also incredibly mentally challenging knowing that you’re competing against someone who has unfair advantages leaving you with little to no confidence.
MSHSL section playoff softball already starts next week. Champlin Park enters the postseason red hot, winners of 14 in a row.
— Chaz Mootz (@ChazMootzCCX) May 17, 2024
The Patriots closed out the regular season last night with a 2-1 win over Chaska. Marissa Rothenberger threw 10 k’s, only allowing 3 hits in 7 IP. pic.twitter.com/gYnl0UlHzG
"This issue has affected me in ways that I never imagined. It’s simply unfair, and I hate that nothing is happening to change that. Boys should not be able to take girls' spots on teams just because they are capable of doing so. I hope that more girls affected by this issue will stand up against this."
-1d7db99dccc9abef7b9378f016b22b68.webp "Maren Angus-Coombs")
Maren Angus-Coombs was born in Los Angeles and raised in Nashville, Tenn. She is a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University and has been a sports writer since 2008. She has been covering college softball since 2016 for various outlets including Softball America, ESPNW and Hurrdat Sports. She is currently the managing editor of Softball On SI and also serves as an analyst for Nebraska softball games on Nebraska Public Media and B1G+.