A transgender teenager from Southern California competed in Saturday’s CIF track-and-field finals despite drawing national scrutiny and criticism from President Trump over her participation earlier in the week.

AB Hernandez, a Jurupa Valley High School junior, competed in several events on Saturday after finishing as the top qualifier in the girls’ high jump, long jump and triple jump on Friday. 

“There’s no words to express how proud I am of her, despite her being targeted, harassed for all these months. She’s here, she’s successful, she did it,” said Hernandez’s mother Nereyda. “When you’re actually here the whole event, you actually see, it’s not just hating. There’s more support, there’s more love.”

Hernandez took home first place medals in both high jump and triple jump and she placed second in the long jump event. Following a rule change by the California Interscholastic Federation, a co-winner was named in each of the three events in which Hernandez placed.

The policy change allows an additional athlete to compete and earn a medal in events in which a transgender athlete also qualified. 

“If necessary, in the high jump, triple jump and long jump events at the 2025 CIF State Track and Field Championships, a biological female student-athlete who would have earned a specific placement on the podium will also be awarded the medal for that place and the results will be reflected in the recording of the event,” CIF officials said in a statement issued on Wednesday.

“The CIF values all of our student-athletes and we will continue to uphold our mission of providing students with the opportunity to belong, connect, and compete while complying with California law,” the statement said.

Related: Nationwide debate over Jurupa Valley transgender athlete’s eligibility in CIF finals continues

CIF officials announced the new policy days before the championships, which then drew a response from the U.S. Department of Justice as they launched a Title IX investigation over transgender athlete participation in California high school sports.

Their rule change was announced less than a day after Mr. Trump took to Truth Social to comment on the matter, threatening to pull federal funding from the state if Hernandez competed. 

Some high school coaches who had student-athletes participating in the finals offered their support for Hernandez, including Santa Margarita High School’s Bryn Williams.

“This is still a high schooler,” Williams said. “She is learning, she is navigating the world just like we are every single day and that I know I would want grace if I was put in a situation where I had a bunch of light on me and what I was doing. So I encourage people to remember that. We are all human and at the end of the day we are all trying to navigate this world.”

The finals began Friday at Buchanan High School in Clovis, which is located in Fresno County. Aside from the crowd that gathered to support participating athletes, the event also drew about 20 protesters who denounced Hernandez’s participation. Some could be seen holding signs that read “Save Girls Sports” and an airplane also flew over the event pulling a banner that read, “No Boys in Girls’ Sports.”

One person was arrested following an altercation between counterprotesters, Clovis police said. Video shows the moments that the person is taken into custody by officers, as well as the moments leading up to their arrest, when they shoved a flag pole through someone’s window. 

The car owner on the other end of the alleged attack spoke with CBS News Los Angeles on Saturday about why he was protesting.

“I think it’s completely unfair to these girls,” said Josh Fulfer. “They’ve worked hard. He has an advantage by being a male and it’s really unfortunate that these girls, the psychological effect that it has on them and places on them when they know they’re not only competing against people of their own sex, but now they gotta go up against a man. … I think it’s really bad that we’re setting this precedent.”

Despite this, business continued as usual inside the stadium, and the events were completed without disruption. 

Crull becomes the first Bradley athlete to qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championship since Tiana LoStracco qualified for the Women’s 800m championship in 2023. He is the first Bradley man to qualify since Daniel Gagne qualified for the Men’s 1500 championship in 2017 and the second Bradley man to do so since 1955. Crull is the sixth Brave to qualify for the NCAA Championships in the 21st century.

Crull began his third career NCAA West First Round meet with the First Round of the Men’s 1500m championship on Wednesday night. Crull finished second in Heat #1 to advance to the quarterfinals on Friday night. His time ranked 13th out of the 48 competing athletes at 3:50.37. 

In the quarterfinals, Crull battled in Heat #2 against fierce competition. Coming to the finish, Crull lunged for the line and placed fifth at 3:47.31, nine-hundredths ahead of sixth place, to qualify for the Outdoor Championships in Eugene.

Six other Braves competed at the NCAA West First Round in College Station.

Jaxson Copelin and Jamie Phillips made their NCAA West First Round debut in men’s 800m competition. Copelin finished fifth in Heat #4 at 1:49.07 and Phillips finished sixth in Heat #3 at 1:49.14, just narrowly missing the quarterfinals by one-tenth of a second.

Abigail Hancock and Kaitlyn Sheppard also made their NCAA West First Round debut, competing in the Women’s 1500m First Round. Hancock finished 10th in Heat #3 at 4:27.34, while Sheppard finished ninth in Heat #2 with a 4:29.81. Trixie Wraith ultimately was a scratch in Heat #2.

Nadia Potgieter competed in the Women’s 5000m Semifinals at the NCAA West First Round for the second consecutive season. Potgieter finished 21st in Heat #1 at 16:59.28.

UP NEXT…

Crull travels to Eugene, Ore., for the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships on June 11-14, 2025. 

BRADLEY RESULTS

KENT CITY, MI — A few screamed overcome with joy. Others winced in pain.

Regardless of the result, there was a chance to compete for the ultimate accomplishment. Athletes from 128 schools across the state took it and ran.

The 2025 MHSAA Division 3 track and field finals was held on Saturday, May 31 at Kent City High School in West Michigan. The top eight finishers across 37 events were awarded medals.

Chesaning took home the boys team title with 57 points. Pewamo-Westphalia boys finished in second place with 34 points.

Olivet girls accumulated 46 points to take home the team title. Erie Mason finished close behind with 41 points.

Click here to see full individual results or here for the team results list.

MLive / Grand Rapids Press photojournalist Isaac Ritchey was there all day to capture the joys of victory and sorrows of defeat. Check out the full gallery above or see a few of our favorites below. Click here for a direct link to the gallery.

You must be a subscriber to view the photo gallery. Subscribers click the “Get photo” link to download high-resolution images right to their device for free as part of their subscription. To subscribe, click this link.

An 18-year-old Massachusetts high school student was detained by federal immigration agents this weekend, school officials confirmed.

The Milford High School student was detained by ICE agents somewhere off-campus, officials wrote in a statement. They did not immediately confirm the student’s name or where the incident occurred.

However, friends say the student’s first name is Marcelo, but they did not provide a last name to NewsCenter 5. They said Marcelo was detained by agents while driving to volleyball practice Saturday morning.

Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey responded to the arrest, demanding to know more information about why Marcello was arrested and his location.

“I’m disturbed and outraged by reports that a Milford High School student was arrested by ICE on his way to volleyball practice yesterday. Yet again, local officials and law enforcement have been left in the dark with no heads up and no answers to their questions,” Healey said in a statement. “I’m demanding that ICE provide immediate information about why he was arrested, where he is and how his due process is being protected. My heart goes out to the Milford community on what was supposed to be a celebratory graduation day. The Trump Administration continues to create fear in our communities, and it’s making us all less safe.”

Milford Superintendent Kevin McIntyre said the district has no role in immigration enforcement operations and that the district supports immigrant families in the same way as all others.

“We have also had a number of parents who have been detained by ICE in recent weeks. We are all distraught by this news,” McIntyre said in a statement. “They are members of the community, students in our classrooms, athletes that compete representing Milford, musicians, artists, friends, and neighbors. We will do everything in our power to support our students and families during these difficult times.”

Marcelo’s girlfriend, Julianys Rentas, says she can’t believe her boyfriend is currently in ICE detention.

“He told me he had chains around his ankles, he had chains around his wrists,” Rentas said. “He’s in a cell with 30 other men. He’s the only 18-year-old there, he’s the youngest there. He is not a criminal. He’s a member of this community and has never done anything wrong.”

Friends and family say Milford is the only home their loved one has ever known, moving to the town at just 6 years old.

“To just separate him from everybody he knows — like his whole life, just because he wasn’t born here — it’s not right,” said Marcelo’s cousin Ana Julia Araujo.

Friends like Colin Greco say the community is devastated at Marcelo’s detainment.

“When we got the news that he was taken into custody, we were all heartbroken,” Greco said. “People were crying. Other people just didn’t know what to say. No words were exchanged in the locker room. People just parted ways after that.”

Marcelo’s volleyball coach, Andrew Mainini, echoed similar sentiments about the high school junior.

“Our athlete, who was detained, may be the friendliest person in the school. Every day, no matter how he felt, he always had a smile on his face,” Mainini said. “He was not only happy himself. He made other people smile.”

Milford Police Chief Rob Tunsio said his department learned about the arrest from the school district. He said that local officers were not involved but are now looking into the situation.

Milford High School’s graduation ceremony is scheduled for Sunday morning.

A peaceful protest is planned for Sunday afternoon at Milford Town Hall.

WCVB reached out to federal agents for more information on Marcelo’s arrest but has yet to hear back.