Female Wrestler Sues Washington School District, Others for Forcing Her to Face Male Opponent
Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) sued several Washington state education institutions and officials Tuesday on behalf of Kallie Keeler, the high school wrestler who was sexually assaulted by a transgender-identified male opponent last December.
The federal suit alleges Rogers High School, Puyallup School District, the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA) and the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) violated Title IX of the Civil Rights Act by failing to separate sports by sex and properly investigate sexual assault.
The filing also alleges the defendants violated Kallie’s mom’s parental rights by failing to inform her Kallie would be wrestling a boy.
“Washington state officials insist on pushing gender ideology at all costs — even at the expense of girls’ safety and privacy,” ADF Senior Counsel Kate Anderson, the director of the ADF Center for Parental Rights, wrote in a press release.
“Tragically, because of district policy, a 15-year-old girl was sexually assaulted by a male opponent on the wrestling mat,” Anderson continued.
“Kallie’s mom was in the gym with her daughter, but she could not protect her because the district’s written policy prohibits notifying parents or anyone else when their daughters will be matched against male athletes.”
On December 6, 2025, Kallie, a sophomore in high school, unknowingly wrestled a male opponent. During the match, she alleged her opponent sexually penetrated her with his fingers for several seconds.
When investigative journalist Brandi Kruse published Kallie’s story in February, classmates and online trolls targeted the teenager, insisting she couldn’t hack the physicality of wrestling.
But ADF’s filing clarifies what happened to Kallie was no commonplace foul. Her opponent digitally penetrated her, going underneath her wrestling singlet, her spandex shorts and her underwear.
“This is not a legal wrestling move, and it is not something that easily happens accidentally,” the filing explains. “Wrestling singlets are very tight spandex, so the fabric resists pressure, and [Kallie] was wearing three layers of fabric.”
Kallie allowed herself to be pinned and left the mat in tears. She already planned to report the assault to her coaches. Before she could, a coach from another school informed her she had just wrestled a boy.
Contrary to Title IX, which requires federally funded schools to separate sports and private spaces by sex, WIAA and OSPI require schools allow students to use bathrooms and participate in sports consistent with their “gender identity,” rather than their sex.
The male who allegedly assaulted Keeler is one of two boys on the Emerald Ridge Highschool girls wrestling team alone. Several girls have reportedly objected to both males’ presence in the girl’s locker room.
To ADF’s knowledge, both boys are eligible to compete in girls wrestling and change in girl’s locker rooms this season.
The filing also alleges the defendants failed to properly investigate Kallie’s claims.
Kallie’s mom reported her daughter’s sexual assault to Rogers High School officials on December 8. State law requires all allegations of sexual assault be reported to law enforcement within 48 hours.
Puyallup School District didn’t report Kallie’s claims to the Pierce County Sherrif’s Office until January 30.
Per district policy, an investigative report should have been by December 28. The investigation should have been concluded or extended by January 7.
But Puyallup School District didn’t open an investigation into Kallie’s experience until February 20 — two and a half months after the initial assault. They have since taken four 30-day extensions.
As of now, the investigation is expected to conclude on June 22.
In the meantime, ADF says Kallie has experienced serious harassment at school. Her wrestling teammates blamed her for getting the team’s coaches in trouble. At least one of her coaches refused to acknowledge her. The lawsuit reads:
ADF is not the only one who believes Washington state is violating Title IX. The Department of Education opened an investigation into Puyallup School District on February 13 for the same offenses.
ADF also alleges Washington state education officials violated parental rights by concealing the identity of boys playing in girls sports.
Following the assault, Kallie’s mom sought special permission for her daughter to wrestle for a different high school — one with a team that didn’t actively antagonize her.
The request was denied.
Kallie’s mom then asked that she and her daughter be informed every time Kallie would compete against a male and that Kallie be allowed to skip the match without any negative consequences.
Again, her request was denied.
Kallie’s mom tried one more time, asking that she and Kallie be informed when Kallie was set to wrestle a male so she could choose to forfeit the match.
Per the filing, Title IX Coordinator Dr. Brobbey informed her the district interprets the state’s mandatory inclusivity policies to “prohibit staff from informing parents or students when girls are set to compete against males in sports or from allowing parental opt-out rights in these situations.”
“Its position is to conceal when males compete against girls in sports,” ADF sums up.
Kallie did not compete in sports for the rest of the 2025-2026 school year because she had no assurance she would be competing against female competitors.
The Fourteenth Amendment grants parents’ freedom to exercise their parental responsibilities, which includes protecting their children from physical harm. Schools should absolutely inform parents if their child is pitted against or forced to change in front of a member of the opposite sex — at the barest of minimums.
Ideally, all schools would follow the law.
The suit asks Kallie not be made to compete against any males in any sport, that she and her mom be informed of any upcoming competitions against males competing in female categories and that she be returned all the accolades taken from her by male athletes.
Speaking of the barest of minimums … it seems like the least they can do.
Additional Articles and Resources
4 Developments in Case of High School Wrestler Allegedly Assaulted by Male Opponent
Washington School District Buries Female Wrestler’s Sexual Assault Complaint Against Male Opponent
Another Male Won Awards At Another Girls Track and Field Championship
Male Athlete Wins Three Girls California Track and Field Titles — Again
Photo courtesy of Alliance Defending Freedom.
