Parents have come forward to allege that a girls’ ultimate frisbee team from Washington was disqualified from a national high school tournament after being accused of “misgendering” a “non-binary” player from an opposing team. The Ultimate High School National Invite, held from June 12-13 in Oregon, had several males playing on girls’ teams.
USA Ultimate (USAU), the governing body which oversees ultimate frisbee in the United States, is known for having an extremely broad gender inclusive policy. In 2020, the organization announced it would be allowing players at all levels of competition to participate in the gender division in which they are most comfortable, regardless of “sex assigned at birth, identification within a gender binary, or any other form of gender identity or expression.”
The policy also does not require any medical interventions, such as hormone replacement therapy or surgery, for any player to be eligible to play in any gender division at any level of competition sanctioned by USAU.
“Within our divisions as they currently exist, USA Ultimate will not discriminate on the basis of gender identity, regardless of sex assigned at birth, or any other form of gender expression for participation in any division,” the policy reads.
“We affirm that people of all gender identities should have the freedom to participate in USA Ultimate sanctioned or championship series events in the division in which they feel most comfortable and safe based on their gender identity and should be recognized, respected, and included at every level of the sport.”
USAU’s policies have resulted in multiple male players joining girls’ ultimate teams at all levels, and the introduction of “gender diverse” teams participating in the girls’ division at tournaments.
During the Ultimate High School National Invite in June, one team in particular stood out for having an explicitly trans activist philosophy.
South Eugene High School is considered to have a “powerhouse” ultimate frisbee team, racking up multiple national titles over the years. The team, which formally changed its title from being a “girls’” team to a “gender diverse” team, has won the national championship in 2022, 2023, and 2024.
Last year, they were named the #1 high school girls ultimate frisbee team in the country by Ultiworld in their preseason rankings.
The team routinely plays in trans pride-themed jerseys and has been noted for having had multiple male players on their roster throughout the years who either identify as “female” or “non-binary.”
These are three boys on the South Eugene High School "gender diverse" ultimate frisbee team. The team name was changed from "girls'" to "gender diverse" after a fourth male at the school suggested it did not represent all the players. (The boys' team remained untouched.)
— HeCheated.org (@hecheateddotorg) April 10, 2025
Using… pic.twitter.com/TWFrja5Vo5
South Eugene’s long-time coaches are Rachelle Depner, Hayden Harker, and Jared Weybright, who is also the president of Emerald Valley Ultimate. Earlier this year, Depner and Weybright signed their names to amicus briefs in support of allowing males to self-identify into women’s sports.
Depner and Weybright are married, and appear to have a non-binary daughter who goes by the name “Trout” and also played on South Eugene for a time.
During last month’s national championship, South Eugene seized a second-place finish against Minneapolis’ Washburn High School.
One ultimate frisbee news outlet covering the championship noted that South Eugene began the match strong and only appeared to lag behind Washburn after one of their players, described by the outlet as having “defensive prowess and offensive consistency,” sat out mid-game. That player, Grant Gillespie, is a biological male who appears to identify as “non-binary.”
But it’s South Eugene’s quarterfinals match against Seattle’s Nathan Hale High School that has caused some quiet controversy amongst parents and match-goers. Following the match, which South Eugene won, Nathan Hale was abruptly disqualified from the championship altogether.
A local newspaper covered the incident, but left the details vague as neither South Eugene’s head coach nor Nathan Hale’s would comment on the official reason behind the disqualification, and instead referred the issue to tournament officials. As reported by Lookout Eugene, “tournament Director Juan Acosta said he spoke with both coaches regarding the matter, but did not elaborate further.”
Acosta also told the outlet: “They know the reasoning, and they know what they need to work on.”
According to some parents who were concerned about being identified, the disqualification came after one or more Nathan Hale players “misgendered” a trans-identified male player on South Eugene. Reduxx repeatedly reached out to Ultimate High School National Invite organizers to further confirm the incident, but did not receive a response.
Speaking to Reduxx, a spokeswoman from HeCheated said the reported incident was not surprising considering the sport’s high concentration of trans activist coaches and players. The spokeswoman noted that exceedingly “inclusive” policies have resulted in activists flocking to ultimate frisbee to promote their ideological projects.
“Coaches and teams use ultimate to promote trans ideology. Like with South Eugene, many teams post about trans rights on their official Instagram pages, wearing trans pride armbands, wave pride flags during games, and even base their entire uniform on ‘trans’ rather than their actual team. The focus is less on athleticism and the sport, but it is instead used as a vehicle for trans ideology,” the spokeswoman said. “They control and dominate the conversation. Other parents are terrified of speaking out due to the fact that those coaches could then retaliate against their child. Some of the coaches on club and collegiate teams are also ‘trans’ identified men who have been ‘women’s’ players.”
HeCheated, which maintains an independent platform that tracks male participation in female sports, slammed USA Ultimate for its policies allowing people to choose which team they’d like to play on based “entirely” on self-identification, and revealed that the issue has permeated every level of the sport.
“At the high school level, South Eugene has won three national titles in a row and finished in second place twice. When they had three boys on the roster in 2025, they were dominant. The same players won youth club national titles as well,” she said. “At the collegiate level, multiple men have been nominated for collegiate MVP awards. Two men were nominated this year. There were at least 7 teams with 9 men total playing at the national championships. Even at the professional level, teams with limited roster spots are drafting men instead of female athletes.”
The spokeswoman says that trans activists have effectively “overrun” the sport, and made it increasingly difficult for female players to speak out.
“They would likely not have the support of USA Ultimate if they did. It would be an uphill battle for them,” she said. On the alleged incident at the Ultimate High School National Invite, she expressed concern over the message it may have sent to young female athletes.
“It is sad that we are teaching girls in high school that they have to silently tolerate this or else they risk losing access to the sports they love.”