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Former Utah State volleyball star Kaylie Ray became a viral folk hero in the “save women’s sports” movement after training with Arizona State Senator Catherine Miranda.
Ray shared her experience enduring the San Jose State volleyball scandal and leading a losing team in protest of a male athlete, at a state education hearing Tuesday, while pushing for a bill that would provide protections for girls and women’s sports in Arizona.
Miranda responded by commenting on Ray’s body before asking, “So how competitive do you really think you are?”
Ray didn’t like him, either during or after the hearing.
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“How can you look me in the eye and ask me if I’m competitive? Obviously I’m standing in front of you fighting for something right now. I don’t know what part of that is not competitive for you. But if you want to be face to face, then we can do that,” Ray told Pak Gazette Digital.
Ray responded in the bedroom, reiterating his point in the same tone he started with. But he had to make an effort to maintain his composure.
“I, at this point, was trying to stay professional, we’re in a professional environment. I was just trying to be respectful and courteous,” he said. “But inside, I was furious.” Ray even had to call his parents after the hearing to vent.
When Miranda initially began addressing Ray, the senator said, “I mean, you look pretty healthy… You look very fit and strong.”
Ray didn’t even know what to do with it.
“When he started saying those words, all I was thinking was, ‘Where could I be going with this?’ she said. “As she continued talking, it became clear to me that, for some reason, my physical appearance or height should have some kind of effect on my competitiveness with men. So they definitely took me by surprise.”
Miranda and his office have not issued a statement about the incident or the violent reaction. Pak Gazette Digital reached out to Miranda’s office several times for a response.
“Usually they put their stories away and run away when they realize they’ve lost the plot a little bit. I just remember that common sense isn’t that common here. And I’m not sure what statement you can make that would show it in a good light,” Ray said. “It wasn’t a logical argument at all.”
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During Miranda’s response, she cited her own experience competing with “men.”
“It’s a sports mentality when you’re growing up and the amount of competition you’re going to take on. So it’s not just a silver bullet for a community of athletes, it’s the individual person that determines how competitive you want to be. So you grew up one way. I grew up a different way. I would have taken on a guy in an instant. I’ve played, sometimes I was the only girl in sports. But to have a guy on my team, I would have appreciated it,” Miranda said.
At no point in Miranda’s response did she use the word “transgender” or even “male” or “female.” She simply referred to her male opponents as “men.”
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According to a 2017 publication in Hispanic Engineer and TechnologyMiranda previously spoke about her experience playing sports with her brother.
“Sports were my life. There were four girls and one boy in my family. My brother made me his ‘little brother’ so he could have someone to play sports with. I was 100% a tomboy,” and claimed she was the only girl playing in a local little league, the website reported.
Ray says she also had brothers and competed against them casually, but she doesn’t think the experience is applicable to high-level sports, especially at the NCAA Division I level.
“I have brothers too. I know what it’s like to grow up competing with boys. But when puberty hit, there was a drastic difference,” Ray said.
“I played volleyball since I was eight years old, and in high school, my brother, my older brother… my mom made him try volleyball.”
Ray said he refused to even practice with his brother and his male teammates at that level.
“It was dangerous,” he said. “It’s stupid that I had to explain it to him.”
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Ray said he would accept an apology if Miranda offered one.
“I think if she gave me a genuine apology, I would accept it. Obviously, she’s coming from a place of ignorance,” Ray said. “I would definitely need to see some action on your part to show that you understand and recognize the truth, the basic truth.”
