COSTA MESA -- The fall semester is already past the midway point, which means winter sports are about to get underway and the spring teams are solidifying their dossiers. Vanguard Athletics is ready to release the baseball, men's volleyball, and track and field schedules, with more to come.
Men's Volleyball
Early Season: The Lions are home for 15 of the 24 contests in 2026, including seven of the first eight matches being inside the Freed Center for Leadership & Service. VU plays two Mountain Pacific Sports Federation contests in the span, hosting USC (Jan. 15) and going to UCLA (Jan. 21). Rockhurst, Lindenwood, Springield, Saint Xaiver, and Edward Waters are the other nonconference teams that come to Costa Mesa in January.
February: The Blue and Gold host UC Irvine on the 4th to get the month going, followed by a trip to Pepperdine on the 10th. If those are not challenging teams, then traveling to the Pyramid and the defending national champions, Long Beach, on the 14th, can't get any tougher. If the NCAA champion is not enough, the Lions then have a home-and-home against NAIA champions The Master's on February 20 and 21st. Throw in a match against UC San Diego at home to close out the month on the 25th, and February will be the heaviest-hitting month of the season.
March: It is a light month for VU, who play at home for two games against MPSF debutantes UC Merced and then a pair of conference matches at Jessup.
End of the Season: The Lions wrap up MPSF play in 15 days in April, with home games against BYU, UCLA, and CUI. After that, the MPSF Tournament starts on April 22nd at BYU and concludes on the 25th.
Baseball
Early Season: The lone nonconference series comes this year at home at the end of January against Saint Martin's (Wash.), and the Saints are hoping a new roster and a new year will bring a better season after winning only three games in 2025. VU then moves into Pacific West Conference play the rest of the way, with a trip to Rocklin (Feb. 13-14) and the split series with Westmont (Feb. 20-21) up first.
Tough Stretch: VU plays some top squads after that, as the team closes February with a game against APU on the 25th before rolling into doubleheaders with Point Loma on February 28 and March 2. Westmont and PLNU were the top two teams in the conference last year, so the Lions will have a lot to do in just the second and third full PacWest series. The team then takes to the skies and plays at Hawaii Hilo on March 9-10, as the Blue and Gold navigate a short weekend to the Big Island, putting a strain on what time zone the players are locked in to.
The Home Stand: After visiting Menlo on March 27-28, the Lions play 10 games in a row on the Dean Harvey Field. The stretch begins with a doubleheader against APU on April 7, then moves to four-game sets against Chaminade (April 10-13) and Hawaii Pacific (April 16-17).
End of the Year: The Lions have senior day at home against Biola on April 25 and then conclude PacWest play at Fresno Pacific on May 1-2. The PacWest Tournament, hosted by Westmont, is May 6-8, and now that the Lions are eligible, the squad has full intention of making their first conference tournament.
Track & Field
Early Season: The track and field programs have two events at Westmont in 2026, with the first being a head-to-head meeting against WC on January 31. The first big event is the OIDFE Challenge on February 7, one of two times the Lions will be at the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps facility. The Soka Indoor Events challenge takes place on February 14 before VU returns to CMS for the Carl Rossi Relays on the 28th.
March: The busiest month opens with the Occidental Invitational on the 14th, with the CUI Titus & Ely Invite following on March 20-21. The multi-event student-athletes then return to Westmont for the Klein/Nwaba Decathlon & Heptathlon on March 26-27, and those not going there will head down the road to the Vince O'Boyle Invite at UCI.
End of the Year: The Lions go to the Moorpark Open on April 3 and tune up for the last time at the Pomona-Pitzer Invite on April 11, which leads into the PacWest Championships on April 23-25 at PLNU. If there are any shots at nationals, the Franson Last Chance Meet at APU on May 8-9 beckons as a final opportunity to improve or get any qualifying marks.
