Judge dismisses Minnesota girls' softball lawsuit over transgender pitcher

A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by three Minnesota high school girls who said they faced an unfair disadvantage competing against a transgender pitcher. U.S. District Judge Eric Tostrud, appointed by President Donald Trump in 2018, threw out the case on Sept. 19.

The plaintiffs, anonymous female athletes, sued Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, the Minnesota State High School League Executive Director Erich Martens, Minnesota Department of Human Rights Commissioner Rebecca Lucero and Minnesota Commissioner of Education Willie Jett, challenging the state’s policy on transgender athletes in girls' sports.

In his ruling, Tostrud wrote that the plaintiffs’ attorneys have "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."

Championship history and performance details were central to the case. Transgender athlete Marissa Rothenberger of Champlin Park High School led the team to a state title, delivering a complete-game shutout in the championship and contributing to a postseason stretch in which she pitched 21 innings over three state tournament games and allowed only two runs. In the postseason, Rothenberger yielded two runs across 35 innings.

One plaintiff described facing Rothenberger as both a physical and mental challenge, noting the opponent’s apparent advantage and the difficulty of getting outs. "Hitting against him is not only a physical challenge but a mental, too. 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 plaintiff said.

Background context is long and complex. After President Trump’s Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports executive order, the Minnesota State High School League announced it would defy federal law by allowing transgender athletes to continue playing in women's sports. Ellison said at a press conference on April 22 that he had received notice from the Department of Justice threatening legal action if the state did not follow the executive order, prompting Ellison to sue first.

The U.S. Department of Education announced in June that its ongoing investigations into Minnesota—one launched in February and another started on June 3—would be elevated to the department’s newly formed Title IX investigations team. "The Trump Administration has a duty to protect women and girls and uphold federal civil rights, and I am pleased to partner with Attorney General Pam Bondi to elevate the Department’s investigations in Minnesota to the Title IX Special Investigations Team," said U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon in the Department’s announcement.

The dismissal ends a case that drew attention to the broader national debate over transgender participation in girls’ sports and the enforcement of Title IX protections. While the plaintiffs noted their dissatisfaction with the ruling, others in the arena see it as a significant resolution in a contentious policy dispute that continues to unfold in courts and statehouses nationwide.