High school softball pitcher throwing shutouts against girls was born male, docs show

A pitcher in Minnesota who was born male is dominating the competition in girls’ softball.

Champlin Park junior Marissa Rothenberger threw a one-hit shutout against Maple Grove last week. The six-foot pitcher struck out seven batters over seven innings, and Champlin Park won the game 2-0.

Going into the game, Maple Grove’s offense had been its strength this season. The team was hitting .364 and averaging over six runs per game. The loss was the first time a team held Maple Grove scoreless this season. 

Minnesota court filings reviewed by The Lion confirm the athlete’s mother applied “to have minor name changed and sex changed on birth records to female” in June 2017.

One father of a Maple Grove softball player told Alpha News he thinks it’s unfair that his daughter has to play against males like Rothenberger.

“To this point, everyone in the softball community is being informed through word of mouth or over the internet, social media, and articles,” he said. “We have the evidence of the birth certificate modification and the obvious physical and performance characteristics that everyone can see firsthand, but no official announcement or addressing of the issue from official sources [like] coaches, ADs, and school administrators. The girls know the truth, but the adults act like nothing is happening. 

“In my view, this has an adverse psychological impact on the girls and feeds the narrative that this is fair and OK,” he added. “Almost as if to shift the burden onto the girls to accept this as normal – and if you don’t, you are the problem.”

Reduxx previously reported it had obtained documents revealing Rothenberger’s mother applied for a new birth certificate to change the child’s name from “Charlie” to “Marissa,” and the new birth certificate indicated the child was born female.

Social media users expressed their frustration with the athlete’s dominance on X.  

An X user posted, “‘Marissa’ isn’t the problem, it’s an effect. The adults allowing and pushing this … are the problem. Abuse of minors, likely for personal gain.” 

Another user wrote, “This will only stop when all individuals and teams refuse to compete against them.” 

Additionally, someone else added, “As a former HS and college softball player this makes me so angry and frustrated. Our girls deserve better! I’m a Minnesota native born and raised. Why can’t our political figures in office and leaders grow a backbone? And stand up for what is right if we actually followed the science.” 

Minnesota is currently facing a U.S. Department of Education investigation for allowing males to compete in girls’ and women’s sports. It comes in response to an executive order President Donald Trump signed earlier this year, directing federal agencies to withhold funding from states and athletic organizations that let males compete against girls.