After competing against a transgender athlete while trying to achieve an NCAA scholarship dream, Lee University volleyball player Macy Petty is applauding House Republicans for taking action to preserve the integrity of women’s sports.
"He was slamming the ball in our faces," Petty said of competing against a biological male on "Varney & Co." Friday. "Men's volleyball nets are over seven inches higher than female nets, so he was playing on a net over seven inches shorter than he should have. And you would expect that mediocre athletes can all of a sudden hit like All-Americans if they're playing on a net seven inches shorter, and that's exactly what happened."
Petty was on Capitol Hill Thursday to watch the House of Representatives pass The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, which aims to prevent biological males from competing as transgender athletes in girls’ and women’s sports at schools across the country.
It was approved with a 219-203 vote. All the "yes" votes reportedly came from Republicans, while all the "no" votes came from Democrats.
Republicans defended the bill as an attempt to spare women and girls from having to unfairly compete against biological males with physical advantages. Democrats argued that the GOP bill is an extension of the bullying facing transgender students in schools.
"That is absolutely not what we're doing," Perry responded. "As an athlete, I see the amazing opportunities that sports can bring, and I want everyone to be able to pursue these opportunities and push for this goal of being a collegiate athlete. And that opportunity must be preserved by preserving the line between men and women's sports. I want transgender athletes to play sports, but they're not exempt from basic rules that girls' sports are for girls only and boys' sports are for boys only."
After former Kentucky and NCAA All-American swimmer Riley Gaines was met with physical and verbal intimidation at a recent San Francisco State University speech, Petty seemed relieved to report that she didn’t experience much backlash Thursday.
"There's typically a lot of counter protesters whenever we're out speaking at events or things like that. There wasn't a lot of opposition there yesterday, thank goodness. It was a pretty civil event where we were able to stand up for what we believe in and finally hear from female athlete voices," Petty said.
Republicans on the Hill rejected claims from Democrats that the legislation makes school sports "less safe for women and girls" and does harm to transgender youth. Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., argued the GOP is waging a "hate" campaign against transgender students.
GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE
"It definitely shows where the party loyalty lies, right? It is not with the safety of Americans, specifically female athletes. They are willing to erase 50 years of progress for female athletes. They're willing to put women in locker rooms with men, forcing them to dress together and undress. It's absolutely sick," Petty said on "Fox News @ Night" following Thursday’s passage of the bill.
"And it just shows how totally blinding this ideology is and how there's no sense of common sense left," she continued, "and they're just totally blinded and only doing things that are fitting within their agenda. And they are willing to sacrifice years of female progress to do it."
Fox News’ Peter Kasperowicz contributed to this report.
