In just two years as a fully-fledged NCAA Division II member, California Baptist University has established itself as one of the top athletic programs in the division. The Lancers finished the 2014-15 season with a 16th-place finish in the Division II Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup standings, moving up 10 spots from last year’s placement.

“Our student athletes and coaches had a great year,” said Director of Athletics Dr. Micah Parker. “It’s exciting to be ranked so high in only our second year in the NCAA Division II.”

CBU, which claimed its third PacWest Commissioner’s Cup earlier this spring, finishes as the highest program not only among the PacWest institutions, but the West Region as well with 523.70 points. The Lancers completed a 10-spot jump from its 26th-place finish in the Directors’ Cup standing from 2013-14. Azusa Pacific comes in at No. 17 (522.75) in its first year eligible, while Simon Fraser is the next West Region program, sitting at No. 26 (467.00).

The Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup was developed as a joint effort between the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and USA Today. Points are awarded based on each institution’s finish in up to 14 sports — seven women’s and seven men’s.

California Baptist University students have been known to excel in their selective fields outside of college, and the same goes for the school’s student-athletes. It was perhaps most evident this summer, as four Lancers in different sports have experienced success outside of the collegiate ranks.

Spotlights were shown on the Lancers’ baseball, women’s soccer, men’s volleyball and men’s water polo programs this summer, with all three seeing one of their athletes break into new waters in their professional or international careers. Baseball’s Adam Hofacket signed a minor-league contract with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Kristopher Johnson of men’s volleyball made the United States team for the Pan American Games and men’s water polo’s Eric Carnohan inked a professional contract with Water Polo Navarra of Pamplona, Spain. Kelly Jenks from women’s soccer stepped in and made an immediate impact with Kokkola F10, a professional team in Finland.

Hofacket became the 26^th Lancer drafted under Coach Gary Adcock’s 12-year tenure and is one of four players currently in the minor leagues – joined by Caleb Dirks, Trevor Oaks and Sharif Othman. Dirks and Othman are both playing at the double-A level. In 24 games, Hofacket has maintained a 3.41 earned-run average, logged eight saves and struck out 22 batters, compared to just three walks.

Jenks adjusted to the next level quickly for Kokkola F10. She played in each of the team’s first 10 games and was leading the league in goals early on, with 12 on the year. Her highlight performance of the young season came in a 4-0 win over Vantaa VJS on June 27th. She scored in the first minute of action and then assisted on another goal in the 91st minute.

Johnson was only one of two non-NCAA Division I products selected to the U.S. team but started every set of the tournament held in Toronto, Canada, which was also broadcast through WatchESPN. He finished the tournament with 27 kills on a .529 hitting percentage, eight blocks and four digs in five matches. Johnson has also been named to the U.S. preliminary roster for the 2015 FIVB World Cup and will continue his professional career with Leka Volley Club in Finland this year.

Carnohan was signed by Navarra, along with two international players from Brazil and Canada. He left for Spain on Aug. 24^th and will look to build on a fantastic senior season he completed with the Lancers in 2014. He joins a list of elite Lancers who have played water polo on the international stage. Austen Ramer, CBU’s career leader in saves with 1,129, played professionally for three years in Australia after graduating in 2012. Brandon Jung also saw plenty of playing time in the Olympics for Canada in 2008.

Over the last two seasons, more than 63 percent of California Baptist University’s eligible athletic programs have qualified for the NCAA Division II postseason. The Lancers will look to their six fall programs to set the pace for more success on the conference and national levels in 2015-16. Four fall sports advanced to the NCAA playoffs in their first shot in 2013-14, and the Lancers will look to improve on that feat two years later.

Both men’s and women cross country have qualified for the Division II postseason the last two years, with both programs sweeping the PacWest Championships last year. CBU will open 2015-16 at home with the Lancer Invitational at the Riverside City Cross Country Course at 5 p.m. on Friday. It will be one of three rare home opportunities to see CBU in Riverside this season, with the CBU Invitational (Oct. 3^rd) and PacWest Championships (Oct. 24^th) taking place at the Riverside City Cross Country Course, as well.

The men are looking to win their fifth-straight PacWest title and advance out of the West Region tournament for the third season in a row. The women aim at a repeat performance in the PacWest and to reach the Division II Championships for the first time.

In the gym, women’s volleyball was picked to win the PacWest in the conference’s preseason poll after a 16-12, 12-8 in conference run in 2014. The Lancers return all but two regular contributors from last season, including three All-PacWest players and the reigning PacWest, West Region and Division II Freshman of the Year determined by the American Volleyball Coaches Association.

For the second year in a row, CBU will open up at Cal State East Bay’s Route 92 Tournament, followed by a trip to Seattle Pacific for the GNAC-PacWest Crossover. The Lancers open up the conference and home season simultaneously when it hosts Dixie State at 7 p.m. on Sept. 18^th.

Women’s soccer opens the year in Bellingham, Wash. with games against Western Washington and Concordia (Ore.) on Thursday and Saturday, respectively. The Lancers will open at home against Sonoma State on Sept. 10^th at 3 p.m. The team is looking to build on its 11-4-3 record from 2014 when it took second in the PacWest with a 9-0-3 record and just missed out on the postseason.

After winning its final three contests last year, men’s soccer is determined to carry that momentum over into 2015. CBU is looking to charge back into the playoffs, like it did in 2013, after going 18-15-2 and 16-8 in the PacWest combined over the last two years. Much like the women, the Lancer men will open the season in Washington against Seattle Pacific and Simon Fraser in Seattle on Thursday and Saturday, respectively. Cal State Dominguez Hills comes to the Lancer Soccer Field at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday to kick off the home schedule for CBU.

Men’s water polo is gearing up for a new season with a new coach, Kevin Rosa. The Lancers are coming off a program-best, fourth-place finish in the Western Water Polo Association last year and return many of the players who were key to that success. The team is receiving votes in the Collegiate Water Polo Association’s preseason NCAA top-20 poll and opens the year against No. 2 USC and No. 3 Cal in the Triton Invitational on Saturday at 11:10 a.m. and 3:10 p.m., respectively. CBU will open up at home against UC Irvine on Sept. 16th.

After all the success California Baptist University experienced in its first season as a fully-fledged NCAA member, the Lancers took on the challenging task of having to top themselves in 2014-15. For the second year in a row, CBU produced four conference-championship teams, qualified 12 of 19 eligible teams for the NCAA postseason and became the first institution to win the PacWest Commissioner’s Cup three times.

There were new successes along the way. The Lancers jumped up 10 spots in the Division II Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup standings to 16^th place. CBU was the only school to send both their men’s and women’s basketball teams to the Division II Sweet 16. It was the start of a historic run for women’s basketball, as it became the first program to win an NCAA Division II West Regional championship and ultimately advance to the Division II Championship game.

Cross country set the pace for CBU in the fall by sweeping the PacWest Championships for the second time in four years, giving the school its first two conference crowns of the year. It was the fourth-straight title for the men, which advanced to nationals for the second year in a row. Women’s cross country was also represented at the Division II Championships by an individual (Caroline Barkechir) for the first time. There was more individual honors in store for the Lancers in the fall, with women’s volleyball’s Lauren Hackett being named the PacWest, West Region and Division II Freshman of the Year by the AVCA.

Sweet 16 runs by both basketball teams made for a wildly successful winter for the Lancers, as they were the only Division II institution to send both squads to regional championships. That said, the conference title claimed in the season was women’s swimming/diving repeating in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. It preceded an eighth-place performance in Division II for the aquatics squad, while its male counterparts clinched a top-10 finish.

Both those would have stood for the top showings in the nation for the Lancers if not for a historic, Cinderella run from women’s basketball. The team entered the postseason unranked and rattled one upset after another en route to the championship game. Along the way, CBU ended the longest winning streak in the nation by toppling second-seeded Limestone’s 33-game streak in the semifinals by a score of 85-67.

Good times kept rolling into the spring, with five of the six teams qualifying at least one individual for the NCAA postseason. Women’s golf moved on to the Division II West Regional in consecutive years after bringing home the program’s first conference crown in the PacWest, with men’s golfer Kavan Eubank winning the individual championship. Both baseball and softball advanced to the West Regional for the second year in a row, while both distance track squads sent at least one individual to a national championship and ran away with an All-American. The spring gave cheer the chance to do something no other All-Girl Division II team has done. The Lancers delivered, winning their third-straight National Cheerleaders Association title to remain undefeated since 2013.

Twelve California Baptist University athletic programs are offering a total of 25 camp sessions this summer.

Youngsters have the opportunity to learn from the best Lancers have to offer in the sports of men’s and women’s basketball, soccer, swimming, volleyball, water polo, baseball, softball and wrestling.  Camps are already underway and will continue through June and July, with the camp season wrapping up in August.

For more information on prices, dates and offerings, visit the www.cbulancers.com/camps and select the sport you are interested in learning more about. Camp registration and payments can be made online for a majority of the camps.

While the NCAA Division II season may come to an end in late May, California Baptist University baseball’s year doesn’t come to a close until mid-June after the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.

CBU has served as a reliable pipeline to the MLB over the years, and produced a top-10 round talent for the second year in a row when junior right-handed pitcher Adam Hofacket was drafted by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in the 10^th round at 315 overall Tuesday.

In all, the Lancers have had 26 players drafted over the past 34 years, with Gary Adcock having 15 of his players drafted over his 12 years coaching CBU. At least one Lancer has been selected in the MLB Draft in each of the last six years, with a program-high four coming in 2011.

There are currently three active Lancers in the minor leagues: Caleb Dirks, Trevor Oaks and Sharif Othman. If Hofacket does not return to CBU for his senior season, he will go down as the owner of the second-lowest earned run average in program history. His 2.66 career ERA only takes a backseat to Oaks’ 1.86 ERA from 2014.

It gives Hofacket the lowest ERA of any Lancers multi-year pitcher, as Oaks was at CBU for one season before being drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the seventh round at 219 overall last year.

Hofacket, a Corona native, is a two-time All-PacWest and All-West Region pitcher. He also ranks fifth in career strikeouts (198), innings pitched (253.2) and seventh in wins (19) and complete games (7) in the CBU record books.

When California Baptist University swept both cross country titles back in the fall, it showed its ability to dominate on both the men’s and women’s side of a sport. The Lancers continued that trend in the winter, most noticeably in basketball. CBU was one of 20 institutions to send both basketball teams to the NCAA Division II postseason, and the only one to advance both to the regional championship round.

In their first NCAA playoff appearance, the Lancer women punched their ticket into the Elite 8 in their first NCAA playoff run by winning its three West Regional games by an average of 19.3 points. On Tuesday, it advanced to the Final Four with a victory over New Haven. By virtue of its Final Four appearance alone, CBU has guaranteed itself the best-ever finish in Division II by any Lancer program.

In addition to being an All-West Region selection by Daktronics, Darsha Burnside was named the West Region Tournament MVP for CBU, which also had Cassidy Mihalko receive all-tournament honors. Burnside and Mihalko were joined on the All-PacWest teams by Kamille Diaz and Courtney Nelson. This well-rounded squad takes a 28-6 and 16-4 in conference record into its Division II semifinal game with 2nd-ranked Limestone on Wednesday in Sioux Falls, S.D.

For the second year in a row, CBU’s men’s basketball made the postseason and hit the Sweet 16 after a successful regular season campaign. The Lancers finished the season and conference with 26-7, 16-4 respective records. CBU exacted some revenge on Chico State in the first round of the West Regional and then defeated Seattle Pacific on a buzzer-beating putback from Trevone Williams.

Gelaun Wheelright and Taj Spencer were rewarded for their heroics on the court, with each garnering All-PacWest and All-West Region honors. Wheelwright was named the PacWest Newcomer of the Year and an All-West Region Tournament player.

After setting the standard for all other Lancer programs to follow with an institution-best ninth-place finish in Division II back in 2014, CBU women’s swim/dive one-upped itself in 2015. Behind 13 All-American performances (nine individual, four relay), the Lancers took eighth place in Division II this season. It came on the heels of another dominant Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference campaign, as it claimed its second conference title. The Lancers dominated the four-day event, finishing with a staggering 1,053 team points, almost 300 points more than their runner up. The women won event after event and set 11 new RMAC records, 10 Colorado Mesa pool records and seven CBU records. They won 16 of the 21 events with three relay gold medals and 13 individual titles. Mary Hanson and Alena Rumiantceva helped destroy a lot of those records and both were named Swimmer of the Meet. Hanson also added Swimmer of the Year to her accolades. On the diving board, Lauren Skinner swept the awards with both Diver of the Meet and Diver of the Year. Rick Rowland was also named Coach of the Year for the second straight year.

After entering the Division II Championships with a #16 ranking, CBU men’s swim/dive sealed a 10^th-place performance in Division II after finishing 10 spots back a year ago. The Lancers did so with the help of 18 All-American feats (14 individual, four relay).

CBU also took second in the RMAC after being expected to finish third, breaking records along the way. Josh Hanson was named Swimmer of the Meet after a stellar performance. Freshman Zach Parry picked up the Diver of the Meet honor after sweeping both the 1-meter and 3-meter events. Parry had to battle round-after-round on the one-meter platform to take the event.

For the second year in a row, CBU wrestling produced an NCAA Division II All-American. Jacob Waste gave the Lancers their fourth NCAA All-American in two seasons by taking fifth in the 184-pound bracket at the Division II Championships after winning a Super Region IV title. Nolan Kistler also qualified for the national tournament by taking fourth in his region.

Waste and Kistler’s individual achievements were the icing on the cake for another historic team season for CBU. After setting a program-best for wins in a season in 2014, California Baptist University one-upped itself this year by going 13-5, 6-2 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. The Lancers defeated two NCAA Division I teams in Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and Grand Canyon and two top-20 ranked squads, while peaking at No. 12 in the D-II rankings themselves. Waste also became the first D2Wrestle.com Wrestler of the Week in program history for the Lancers, as well.

With the final stretch of 2014-15 well underway, California Baptist University is looking to add to its impressive list of accomplishments in NCAA Division II this spring. Both softball, baseball are aiming at qualifying for the NCAA playoffs for the second year in a row, along with men’s and women’s golf. Cheer is aiming at winning its third-consecutive NCA national title, and both distance track teams have individual NCAA glory on their minds.

CBU women’s golf resumed its season in the spring with a victory at the Super San Diego Championship, and followed it up with Tina Yang winning her first individual title of the season at the CBU Invitational where the Lancers took second. With top-10 finishes at all eight of its tournaments and five top-three marks, CBU has jumped to eighth in the NCAA Division II rankings, with top-10 finishes at all eight of its tournaments and five top-three marks this year.

On the softball diamond, the Lancers opened the season with a top-25 ranking and had three players earn preseason honors. Belinda Renne was named the PacWest Preseason Pitcher of the Year and was joined on the preseason all-conference team by Savannah Miller and Krista Mann. CBU has since jumped to No. 13 in the Division II rankings, and are 28-6, 17-3 in conference about halfway through the season. They opened PacWest action with series wins over Holy Names, Notre Dame de Namur, Chaminade and sweeps of BYU-Hawaii, Hawaii Hilo and Academy of Art. Ashley DeVaere has been a dangerous weapon for the Lancer offense, leading the conference in RBIs, doubles, home runs and walks.

The two-time National Cheerleaders Association championship CBU cheer team is ready to start another campaign for the coveted title. This year, the Lancers qualified a stunt group for nationals. Katarina McKnight, Briana Davee, Taylor Hendricksen, and Raven Rivera will compete at the USA College Championships on March 23 and then again at the NCA College Championship in April.

Distance track is off to a very promising start this season. Through three events, the Lancer men and women’s teams have combined to post 18 (11 men, seven women) top-10 performances. CBU showed it is starting to hit its stride at the Occidental Distance Carnival. Valentin Robert has stood out not only for CBU or in Division II, but in the nation at large. His time of eight minutes, 59.44 seconds in the steeplechase placed him second and was not only an NCAA Division II qualifying time but the fastest time for the event in Division II and the NCAA overall. Abel El-Hajjami also grabbed a B-cut and top-three time in Division II of 14:33.12 in the 5000 meter.

On the women’s end of things, Caroline Barkechir set a new school record in the 3000 (10:06.35) and 5000-meter (17:02.36) events. Her 5K mark also gave her a B-cut for the Division II Championships. Katie Deimling also grabbed the program’s first victory of the season, taking the steeplechase in 11:24.35.

There has been a hot streak brewing in the Lancer Aquatics Center, as CBU women’s water polo has won 10 of its past 11 matches, including seven straight to improve to 14-8 this season. Six of the Lancers’ wins have come over NCAA Division I squads — Siena, Bucknell, George Washington, Iona and St. Francis. CBU will look to continue to build a full head of steam heading into the Golden Coast Conference Championships April 23^rd to the 24^th.

After reaching the NCAA Division II West Region semifinals in its first year playoff eligibility, CBU baseball gave itself a challenge non-conference schedule with two four-game series with top-10 ranked opponents and took home a 17-3 shellacking of #3 Colorado Mesa and 3-2 win over #9 Cal Poly Pomona. The Lancers will have to battle through an equally daunting PacWest slate. After being picked to win the conference, with Andy Crowley also expected to repeat as the PacWest Player of the year in the preseason polls, four of the nine league squads are currently ranked in the NCBWA’s top-10 West Region teams. CBU carries a 10-12, 2-2 in conference record into its second conference series with Hawaii Pacific, the No. 8 team in the region, at James W. Totman Stadium Saturday and Monday. CBU has been picked to win the PacWest title for the third time in four years, with Andy Crowley being named the conference preseason player of the year in the poll of the league’s coaches.

With the spring season now in full swing, CBU men’s golf has turned a new leaf with its young group. With the addition of sophomore Fresno State transfer Christian Sanders, the Lancers have produced top-seven finishes at their three spring tournaments. It started with a seventh-place showing at the primarily Division I Folino Invitational, followed by a bronze finish at the Coyote Classic and sixth-place showing at the St. Edward’s Invitational. Phenomenal freshman Kavan Eubank has highlighted the Lancers’ success and won consecutive PacWest Golfer of the Week awards after winning medalist honors at the Coyote Classic and going top-10 at the Folino Invite.

Records have already been broken, with two single-season marks in jeopardy for a new-look Lancer men’s volleyball, which stands at 6-15, 2-13 in the MPSF more than halfway through its schedule in the toughest conference in the country. In a sweep of UC Merced on January 10^th, the Lancers attacked at a .627 percentage (36 kills, four errors in 51 attempts), which ranks second in CBU history and fourth in the MPSF since the rally-scoring era began in 2001. The Lancers also had 16 aces against the Bobcats, which tied a program high and is two off the MPSF’s all-time record. Enrique de Diego Garcia’s current 1.28 blocks-a-set average ranks him second on CBU’s single-season list, and tied a single-match record with 16 blocks in a sweep of UC San Diego, which stood as a new three-set record. He also ranks 10th in single-season hitting percentage with a .385 mark. Coming off a 17-dig performance, Kevin Kustura has put up 2.13 digs a set this year, which is the fifth best average in a season for CBU.

With the winter season nearing its conclusion, California Baptist University continued its impressive standing in the race for another PacWest Commissioner’s Cup. The Lancers are in a good spot, looking for its third Cup and second in a row after just four years as a member of the conference. 

The Lancers sit atop the 2014-15 standings with an average of 12.429 points, while rival Azusa Pacific is right on their heels with a 12.000 average. Last year, CBU grabbed its second Commissioner’s Cup in one of the closest races in conference history. The Lancers became just the second school in the conference, along with Hawai’i Pacific, to win the Commissioner’s Cup twice. CBU won it in its first year in the conference three years ago.

The PacWest Commissioner’s Cup Scoring System awards points to schools based on their finishes in conference-sponsored sports. Regular-season standings are used for baseball, basketball, soccer, softball and volleyball, while the results of the conference championships in the sports of cross country, golf and tennis. Tennis, golf, baseball and softball are still yet to be calculated into the mix.