By The Associated Press

MINNEAPOLIS - Minnesota's football team barred the younger sister of former kicker Dan Nystrom from trying out.

"It's men's college football, and it is not a co-ed sport," assistant athletic director Tim Allen told the Star Tribune of Minneapolis.

Mary Nystrom didn't return phone messages left by The Associated Press on Friday. Dan Nystrom could not be reached for comment.

Mary, a junior, followed her brother as a kicker in high school and wanted to try to do the same in college after spotting the football team's ad seeking a "quality kicker/punter."

The Gophers aren't obligated to give her a tryout because schools can prohibit women from participating in men's contact sports. Once a woman is allowed to participate, she must be treated equally.

Last year, New Mexico's Katie Hnida became the first woman to play in an NCAA Division I-A game when her extra-point attempt was blocked against UCLA in the Las Vegas Bowl.

Other teams have had women on their rosters.

"I'm a little disappointed," Mary Nystrom told the newspaper. "I don't know why I couldn't (try out). But I'm not going to fight it. It's not that big a deal."

Nystrom said more than 20 kickers showed up for the tryout. She said she was allowed to kick on her own, without being part of the official tryout.

She said she can make kicks from 40 yards.