The 20-year-old Colorado Christian University sophomore, recently named a Courage Wins Champion by XX-XY Athletics, told OutKick that the hostility has intensified as her public profile has grown."I had a person say that they were gonna come to the school and kill me.That one was a little scary," Kotzmacher said.Kotzmacher said she reported the threat to her school and had documented other concerning messages over the summer.
Asked whether anyone had been arrested, she said no."I’ve been getting a lot of people telling me to go kill myself or that I don’t deserve to be alive or that I should die, a bunch of stuff like that, which has been really difficult to hear," she said.FINAL SOPHIE CUNNINGHAM RALLY OF THE 2026 REGULAR SEASON PITS SUPPORTERS AGAINST TRANS ACTIVISTS IN MINNESOTASoftball player Kendall Kotzmacher tosses a ball.(Courtesy of Kendall Kotzmacher)Knowing that strangers can identify where she attends college has added to her fear."I think people knowing where I go to school has been a little bit scary just because I never know if someone’s going to show up or what’s going to go on," she said.The backlash has also left Kotzmacher concerned about the teammates who publicly support her.
She said one person replied to teammates’ comments on her social media posts, visited their accounts and looked up their names and statistics."I think I want to protect them as much as possible," she said."So trying to make sure that they’re not getting any of the backlash and that it’s kind of just on me has been a focus of mine."Kotzmacher said she offered in the team’s group chat to remove their names from her social media and make clear they were not involved in her advocacy.Her teammates rejected the offer, she said."And they’re like, absolutely not.
Like, we’re in this together.We’re going to be supportive of you," Kotzmacher recalled.
"Like, we’re all here for you, which has been so refreshing to hear because I didn’t really get that las...