British Columbia basketball team to skip games over alleged mistreatment of tran player

The AP Top 25 women’s college basketball poll is back every week throughout the season! Mariners forward Harriette Mackenzie spoke to The Canadian Press in October about verbal and physical mistreatment she said she experienced when her team hosted Columbia Bible College for a pair of games in Nanaimo. Mackenzie, who is transgender, said the visiting team’s coach, Taylor Claggett, went on a “tirade” after losing on Oct. 25, yelling at a Mariners staff member about how Mackenzie shouldn’t be allowed to play against women. Columbia Bible College, an evangelical Mennonite college, later said in a statement that Claggett was “speaking out for the safety of her players like any good coach would do.” “We stand in support of Taylor Claggett, and all our coaches, in expressing their legitimate concerns for the safety of our student-athletes,” the statement said. You should be standing with us, standing up for safe and fair play.” The team — ranked first in the conference and fifth in the country with an 11-1 record — said it will not play at CBC until PACWEST suspends Claggett, moves the provincial championship to a venue other than CBC and requires the school to commit to a “zero-tolerance policy for hate and discrimination.” The letter argued that VIU should not be penalized with a loss if the team does not play this weekend’s games.