California Baptist University
Santa Clara University
VB Preview: CBU Heads to NorCal for the Santa Clara Mission Classic
9/2/2025 1:46:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
RIVERSIDE--- The California Baptist University volleyball team will gear up for its second tournament of the season this weekend as it heads to NorCal to compete in the Santa Clara Mission Classic beginning on Thursday, September 4.
The Lancers went 1-2 on opening weekend at the Ridge Invitational, dropping contests to Pacific and CSUN, while defeating Idaho State in five sets. This weekend, the Lancers will open up against host Santa Clara on Thursday, then take on UNLV and Portland State to close the tournament.
This will be the second time in program history that the Lancers will face Santa Clara after competing against them in the same tournament in 2023, where the Broncos would win in four sets. The Broncos dropped both of their opening matches at the Catholic Classic in South Bend, Indiana, to Notre Dame and Villanova. CBU will then face UNLV on Friday afternoon, marking the first time the two programs have met. The Rebels went 1-2 in their home opening tournament, dropping matches to Iowa and Utah Tech while sweeping Cal State Bakersfield. The final matchup will be the first of two this season against Portland State. The Vikings dropped all three of their opening weekend matches and will have two more at the Battle By The Bay Tournament before facing the Lancers on Saturday morning.
Trevor Johnson's squad was led by the services of Maddie Brown and Emery DeJong on the opening weekend, with both of them named to the Ridge Invitational All-Tournament Team. Brown, who missed all of 2024 with a knee injury, got the nod at setter and came back in a big way over the weekend with 98 assists, four kills, five blocks, and 24 digs. DeJong led the team in kills with 30 and was second on the team in digs with 25. Coach Johnson utilized his incredible depth with all 14 healthy players competing during the tournament. Freshman Middle Blocker Filippa Botcher was a standout this weekend as well, with 14 kills and leading the team with 16 blocks.
MATCHUP INFORMATION:
DATES: Sept. 4-6
WHERE: Santa Clara, CA
WATCH: ESPN+, SCU Live Stream
NEXT: CBU will open the Mission Classic on Thursday, September 4, against Santa Clara at 6 PM PT.
