AZUSA, Calif. – It all came down to Monday's doubleheader – the regular season, bragging rights over the conference rival and the PacWest championship – for California Baptist University and Azusa Pacific.
 
While there may have been more drama than hoped, it made the Lancers' victory all that much sweeter. CBU secured the conference championship – its fifth in seven years and third PacWest title – with a nail-biting 6-5 win over Azusa Pacific in game one at Cougar Baseball Field. To put the icing on the cake, CBU swept the doubleheader with a 9-5 win in the finale.
 
"It's indescribable right now, there's a lot of happiness," said Antonio Chavarria. "We finished strong. We wish we could have finished it back home in front of our fans, but to come out here and do it at their field today was just exciting."
 
For Coach Gary Adcock, a two-day break between games two and three in the series, presented an advantage and a challenge.
 
"We really just wanted to focus in on doing what we do," Adcock said. "It's so cliché but it's true: winning the pitch and the inning, trying not to make the moment bigger than what it is and trusting the fact that God has a plan and we have to honor Him with whatever that is."
 
CBU ends the regular season with a 39-11, 29-7 conference record, and snaps APU's 10-game winning streak in the process. The Cougars finish up at 30-21, 25-11.
 
"I told the team it's been a blessing we've had these three games because it creates a playoff environment before the playoffs. It allows us to try to navigate how we deal with adversity, it's been a blessing," Adcock said of having the PacWest title come down to the final four and then two games of the year. "I saw the response today as different. The response amidst adversity was phenomenal and that's a tribute to the team and the assistant coaching staff keeping them ready."
 
With the conference title in hand, the sixth-ranked Lancers have stamped their ticket to the NCAA Division II West Regional, which will play out May 19-23. They will be glued to the D-II playoff selection show at ncaa.com/live on Sunday at 7 p.m. PDT, as they wait to see if they will host the regional tournament. CBU is currently the No. 1 team in the West Region, with new rankings coming out on Wednesday.
 
"We have a shot to host playoffs; it would be huge not having to travel and pack our bags," Chavarria said. "We would be the first team in CBU history to host regionals, so that would be quite the accomplishment."
 
Jeremy McDonald rose to the occasion and turned in a strong start for the Lancers in Monday's first game. He went seven innings where he limited the powerful Cougars lineup to eight hits, one earned run (three in all) and struck out three.
 
"There was no doubt in my mind we were going to get it done," McDonald said. "Coach always says good pitching beats good hitting, so I wanted to keep the ball down, stay aggressive and not get behind and that's how we'll win. I knew the offense was going to come through."
 
McDonald faced the minimum in the first, second, fourth and seventh innings, with the help of double-play grounders in the second and seventh.
 
Tyson Miller, CBU's ace, came on for the five-out save in the eighth inning and got two big double-play balls to end the game. With a one-run lead and two runners on base, Miller induced a 4-6-3, double-play grounder to end the eighth.
 
"I don't think I've done that before ever in my history here at CBU," Adcock said of using his ace for the save. "I knew I had him for two innings. He was gutsy, he's had a tremendous career and that's one of his first relief appearances for us."
 
APU put the tying run on base with a leadoff single in the bottom of the ninth. The Cougars failed to get the ensuing sacrifice bunt down, as it was popped up to the catcher to keep the runner at first.
 
With Adrian Tovalin, the leading home-run hitter in the PacWest (with 22 on the season) on deck, Miller got a comebacker right to himself and turned it to shortstop for the 1-6-3 double-play grounder to end the game.
 
"Those were some big pitches there in some tight situations, and leaving Tovalin on deck was enormous," Adcock said.
 
Offensively, Chavarria went 6-for-8 with seven runs batted in and three home runs for CBU on Monday. Andrew Montoya batted 4-for-7 on the day for the Lancers. Chavarria was 3-for-4 in the opener, along with Mark Sanchez, while Montoya had two hits in both games.
 
After falling down 2-0 in the fifth inning, CBU needed a response in the sixth. Chavarria provided it almost immediately with a solo home run way over the right-field netting and over Alosta Avenue.
 
"Once I hit the home run, I knew it brought momentum back into the dugout – the whole vibe changed," Chavarria said. "I knew once I hit that, we were going to keep rolling. We just had to stay confident and believe. We knew we were going to stay in it, come back and win it."
 
Things continued to build for the Lancers, as Ryan Williams drew a full-count walk and Sanchez singled into right field for two runners on with no outs. A double-play grounder threatened to end the inning prematurely, but D.J. Porter came through with a pinch-hit walk to put runners at the corners.
 
Both Montoya and Bryce Macy delivered with two-out singles to make it a three-run frame for CBU, giving the Lancers their first lead of the day, 3-2.
 
Azusa Pacific tied the game, 3-3, with a leadoff double and RBI grounder in the bottom of the sixth. It was a short-lived lead, as CBU exploded for three more runs in the seventh on two hits and an error.
 
Stephen Lohr led things off with a walk and Chavarria mounted the pressure with a single into center field. With two on and no outs, Williams squared for a sacrifice-bunt attempt and sent the ball rolling down the third-base line. APU's left-handed pitcher quickly scooped up the ball before it went foul and fired a throw to third attempting to cut down the lead runner.
 
The throw was off-balance and off-target that bounced into left field and allowed Lohr to score when the catcher could not grasp the throw in from left on a play at the plate.
 
It began to snowball in CBU's favor from there, with Sanchez sacrificing both runners into scoring position for one out. Chavarria came home on a wild pitch and a two-out Jake Gallaway single plated the Lancers' third run of the inning for the 6-3 cushion.
 
Facing the conference rival, nothing was going to be easy and APU made sure of it by scoring twice in the bottom of the eighth before Miller ended the inning.
 
In game two, the long ball helped CBU overcome the Cougars. Down 2-0, John Taurinsky tied the game for the Lancers with a two-run homer – his first bomb of the season.
 
Azusa Pacific went back in front, 4-2, in the fourth but CBU flexed its muscles again the fifth. Sheldon Borson started the inning with a full-count walk and Montoya singled to make it a rally. A.J. David kept it going with an RBI single into right field.
 
With two outs and two on, Chavarria cleared the bases with a no-doubt homer to right center. It gave the Lancers a 6-4 lead.  
 
Azusa Pacific fought back within a run in the sixth, but Chavarria gave CBU some insurance with his second three-run homer of the game and third home run of the day. The senior crushed his pitch into the right-center gap to make it a 9-5 Lancer lead.  
 
Freshman Austin Johnson got the four-out save for CBU in the final game. He gave up just one hit and struck out two to record his first save of his career.
 
With no more regular-season games left on the schedule, CBU now turns its attention to Sunday's Division II playoff selection show.
 
"League is just one step, next is winning the regional and then the NCAA Division II Championship, so it's just one step at a time," McDonald said. "It would be huge to host, but it's just a bonus because we can win anywhere."