Women's Basketball Announces 2021-22 Schedule, Set To Face Power Five and Expanded WAC Slate
8/10/2021 12:30:00 PM | Women's Basketball
RIVERSIDE – Eleven non-conference games, including a pair against Power Five opponents, will prepare the California Baptist University women's basketball team for the upcoming new look Western Athletic Conference season.
"This is the toughest schedule in the history of CBU women's basketball," said Coach Jarrod Olson, who is the reigning Kay Yow National Coach of the Year. "We are playing some of the best teams on the West Coast in the nonconference, and I believe the addition of the four Texas schools to the WAC will make this the strongest group of teams in recent league history. "
The four new teams set to challenge for the top spot in the conference are Abilene Christian University, Lamar University, Sam Houston State University, and Stephen F. Austin University. Their transition into WAC play will be swift after jumping from their previous league, the Southland Conference. The Texas four is highlighted by a Stephen F. Austin program who completed a similarly impressive season to CBU's historic run last year, finishing its conference season unblemished at 14-0 as well as winning the Southland Conference Tournament.
"I expect it to be very challenging for us, but we are ready for the challenge. We will only reach our full potential by encountering and overcoming adversity," Olson added. "This season will be a test of both our resiliency and humility, but I am excited to see what our team is capable of."
The Lancers are just one season removed from running up a 26-1 record, including an NCAA best 29-game winning streak. This historic season also saw CBU become just the fourth team since 1998 to finish the regular season and conference tournament without a loss, joining UConn, Baylor, and Notre Dame on that exclusive list.
Fans can reserve their season seats today. The 2021-22 season seats are starting at $99 and guarantee your seating for all men's and women's home games. It also comes with exclusive benefits and will save you money off individual game pricing. To learn more about season tickets and receive further communication about the 2021-22 basketball season ticket process, please visit CBULancers.com/seasontickets. To this day, over 1,100 season tickets have been sold for the upcoming season.
The season will begin with another exciting edition of the Crosstown Showdown on Nov. 9, this time taking place on the campus of UC Riverside in the SRC Arena.
California Baptist's first true road test will be a significant one as it travels to Corvallis to take on Oregon State on Nov. 17. This will mark the second time that the women's program has taken on a Pac-12 opponent, previously pushing Stanford to the brink on Thanksgiving 2019. The Beavers made it to the Round of 32 in last season's NCAA Tournament before losing to the regional top seed, South Carolina.
The Lancers' home opener will coincide with UC Irvine's first trip to California Baptist University on Nov. 20.
The Saint Mary's Thanksgiving Classic will be next up for the Lancers, as tournament play begins with a familiar Big West opponent in UC Santa Barbara on Friday, Nov. 26. The next day will see CBU go up against a Big 12 opponent for the first time ever as the Lancers take on Texas Christian University to finish out the tournament.
December closes with a flurry, as CBU will play six games in 19 days, split evenly between home and road contests. The Lancers will host Pepperdine (Dec. 2), San Diego State (Dec. 8), and UC San Diego (Dec. 15), with trips to Northern Arizona (Dec. 11), Santa Clara (Dec. 18), and Cal Poly (Dec. 21) to finish out the non-conference slate.
Western Athletic Conference play begins with the New Year when CBU travels to Seattle U on Jan. 1. The Lancers currently hold a 17-game conference-winning streak, which is tied for the fifth-longest streak in the nation with Baylor, Stephen F. Austin, and Jackson State. The streak began in Seattle back on Feb. 29, 2019.
Conference play kicks into high gear after the trip to Seattle, beginning with Chicago State at home (Jan. 8) before CBU gets back on the road for a Utah doubleheader against Dixie State (Jan. 13) and Utah Valley (Jan. 15). California Baptist will return home for two games, hosting Tarleton State (Jan. 20) before taking on the ACU Wildcats (Jan. 22) for the first time as WAC opponents.
The firsts continue when the Lancers meet up with the Sam Houston State Bearkats (Jan. 27) in Huntsville, Texas, and the Ladyjacks of Stephen F. Austin (Jan. 29) in Nacogdoches, Texas. Ranked 28 out of 343, the 2020-21 'Jacks had the highest strength of schedule rating on this season's Lancer schedule according to the NCAA Rating Percentage Index (RPI).
February will prove to be a favorable travel schedule as only three of CBU's eight games will be played on the road. Home games will be played against New Mexico State (Feb. 3), Grand Canyon (Feb. 5), Seattle U (Feb. 19), Dixie State (Feb. 24) and Utah Valley (Feb. 26). Three consecutive road games will take place mid-month as the Lancers visit Lamar University (Feb. 10) in Beaumont, Texas, the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (Feb. 12) in Edinburg, Texas, and Grand Canyon (Feb. 17) in Phoenix.
The regular season will close out with a home-and-away weekend that starts with CBU playing at Chicago State on Mar. 3 for one final matchup before the Cougars conclude their membership in the WAC at the end of the season. The regular-season finale will take place on Saturday, March 5 against Lamar University.
The WAC Tournament will take place the next week at The Orleans in Las Vegas. California Baptist, the defending regular-season and WAC Tournament champions will have a bigger, stronger field to contend with if they are to repeat as champions in their second tournament appearance.
With one more season of Division I transition to complete, the WNIT will again be the ultimate postseason goal for CBU. The Lancers won their first and second WNIT games last year against New Mexico and San Francisco, becoming the first WAC team to win a game in the WNIT since 2003 (Tulsa), and the first to win multiple games since 1998 (Colorado State).
"This is the toughest schedule in the history of CBU women's basketball," said Coach Jarrod Olson, who is the reigning Kay Yow National Coach of the Year. "We are playing some of the best teams on the West Coast in the nonconference, and I believe the addition of the four Texas schools to the WAC will make this the strongest group of teams in recent league history. "
The four new teams set to challenge for the top spot in the conference are Abilene Christian University, Lamar University, Sam Houston State University, and Stephen F. Austin University. Their transition into WAC play will be swift after jumping from their previous league, the Southland Conference. The Texas four is highlighted by a Stephen F. Austin program who completed a similarly impressive season to CBU's historic run last year, finishing its conference season unblemished at 14-0 as well as winning the Southland Conference Tournament.
"I expect it to be very challenging for us, but we are ready for the challenge. We will only reach our full potential by encountering and overcoming adversity," Olson added. "This season will be a test of both our resiliency and humility, but I am excited to see what our team is capable of."
The Lancers are just one season removed from running up a 26-1 record, including an NCAA best 29-game winning streak. This historic season also saw CBU become just the fourth team since 1998 to finish the regular season and conference tournament without a loss, joining UConn, Baylor, and Notre Dame on that exclusive list.
Fans can reserve their season seats today. The 2021-22 season seats are starting at $99 and guarantee your seating for all men's and women's home games. It also comes with exclusive benefits and will save you money off individual game pricing. To learn more about season tickets and receive further communication about the 2021-22 basketball season ticket process, please visit CBULancers.com/seasontickets. To this day, over 1,100 season tickets have been sold for the upcoming season.
🏡⚔️🏀
Home court advantage is real! The Lancers own a .777 home winning percentage since 2018.#LanceUp⚔️ pic.twitter.com/9SycV0RpB2
— California Baptist Women's Basketball (@CBUwbb) August 10, 2021
The season will begin with another exciting edition of the Crosstown Showdown on Nov. 9, this time taking place on the campus of UC Riverside in the SRC Arena.
California Baptist's first true road test will be a significant one as it travels to Corvallis to take on Oregon State on Nov. 17. This will mark the second time that the women's program has taken on a Pac-12 opponent, previously pushing Stanford to the brink on Thanksgiving 2019. The Beavers made it to the Round of 32 in last season's NCAA Tournament before losing to the regional top seed, South Carolina.
The Lancers' home opener will coincide with UC Irvine's first trip to California Baptist University on Nov. 20.
The Saint Mary's Thanksgiving Classic will be next up for the Lancers, as tournament play begins with a familiar Big West opponent in UC Santa Barbara on Friday, Nov. 26. The next day will see CBU go up against a Big 12 opponent for the first time ever as the Lancers take on Texas Christian University to finish out the tournament.
December closes with a flurry, as CBU will play six games in 19 days, split evenly between home and road contests. The Lancers will host Pepperdine (Dec. 2), San Diego State (Dec. 8), and UC San Diego (Dec. 15), with trips to Northern Arizona (Dec. 11), Santa Clara (Dec. 18), and Cal Poly (Dec. 21) to finish out the non-conference slate.
Western Athletic Conference play begins with the New Year when CBU travels to Seattle U on Jan. 1. The Lancers currently hold a 17-game conference-winning streak, which is tied for the fifth-longest streak in the nation with Baylor, Stephen F. Austin, and Jackson State. The streak began in Seattle back on Feb. 29, 2019.
Conference play kicks into high gear after the trip to Seattle, beginning with Chicago State at home (Jan. 8) before CBU gets back on the road for a Utah doubleheader against Dixie State (Jan. 13) and Utah Valley (Jan. 15). California Baptist will return home for two games, hosting Tarleton State (Jan. 20) before taking on the ACU Wildcats (Jan. 22) for the first time as WAC opponents.
The firsts continue when the Lancers meet up with the Sam Houston State Bearkats (Jan. 27) in Huntsville, Texas, and the Ladyjacks of Stephen F. Austin (Jan. 29) in Nacogdoches, Texas. Ranked 28 out of 343, the 2020-21 'Jacks had the highest strength of schedule rating on this season's Lancer schedule according to the NCAA Rating Percentage Index (RPI).
February will prove to be a favorable travel schedule as only three of CBU's eight games will be played on the road. Home games will be played against New Mexico State (Feb. 3), Grand Canyon (Feb. 5), Seattle U (Feb. 19), Dixie State (Feb. 24) and Utah Valley (Feb. 26). Three consecutive road games will take place mid-month as the Lancers visit Lamar University (Feb. 10) in Beaumont, Texas, the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (Feb. 12) in Edinburg, Texas, and Grand Canyon (Feb. 17) in Phoenix.
🛄🚌✈️
We're taking this show on the road!#LanceUp⚔️ pic.twitter.com/zdNbgQmSag— California Baptist Women's Basketball (@CBUwbb) August 10, 2021
The regular season will close out with a home-and-away weekend that starts with CBU playing at Chicago State on Mar. 3 for one final matchup before the Cougars conclude their membership in the WAC at the end of the season. The regular-season finale will take place on Saturday, March 5 against Lamar University.
The WAC Tournament will take place the next week at The Orleans in Las Vegas. California Baptist, the defending regular-season and WAC Tournament champions will have a bigger, stronger field to contend with if they are to repeat as champions in their second tournament appearance.
With one more season of Division I transition to complete, the WNIT will again be the ultimate postseason goal for CBU. The Lancers won their first and second WNIT games last year against New Mexico and San Francisco, becoming the first WAC team to win a game in the WNIT since 2003 (Tulsa), and the first to win multiple games since 1998 (Colorado State).
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