Riley Gaines praised a Massachusetts high school's decision to forego playing girls' field hockey teams against teams with boys and criticized NCAA president Charlie Baker.
Gaines, host of Outkick “Gaines for Girls” Dan Dakich, podcast producer and director of the Riley Gaines Center for Leadership Institute, appeared on “Don't @ Me with Dan Dakich” to discuss Dighton-Rehoboth Regional High School's decision to forfeit its game against Somerset Berkeley.
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Riley Gaines (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images)
“Here's what leadership looks like. We had a high school team last year, a team called Digton-Rehoboth field hockey,” Gaines said of an incident last year. “They were playing another team, Swampscott, and they had a boy on their team. He hit the ball and it hit a girl in the face. Dan lost all his teeth. He had to have facial reconstructive surgery to rebuild his face and his smile.”
“The superintendent released a statement saying safety is more important than winning, which I thought was very well said. He went on to say that we may not even qualify for the playoffs, we may not compete for a league championship, and that's OK, because I do my job to prioritize and protect our students and players.”
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Tuesday's decision to withdraw came after coaches and team captains met on the matter and comes in the wake of a new policy being introduced that allows players and coaches to opt out of playing in games or competitions with opposing teams “that include members of the opposite sex.”
“In accordance with the School Committee Police JJIB-Interscholastic Athletics, the renewal of which was approved by the Digton-Rehoboth Regional School Committee on June 25, 2024, the district has notified Somerset-Berkeley Regional High School that they will be forfeiting their field hockey game scheduled for Sept. 17,” the district's statement read.
“This decision was made by our field hockey coaches and captains and was notified to the opposing team,” the statement continued. “The school district supports this decision because there are times when safety must take precedence over winning. We understand that this forfeit will hurt our chances of winning the league and potentially qualifying for the playoffs, but we hope other schools will consider following our lead in the interest of ensuring safety and promoting fair competition for our girls' athletes.”
Gaines said he hopes Baker will follow suit.
NCAA President Charlie Baker (Michelle Pemberton/IndyStar/USA Today Network)
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“I hope that NCAA president Charlie Baker has half the guts, half the courage and half the bravery that this president — I think his name was Bill Rooney — has,” Gaines said.
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