AZUSA, Calif. -- For the second consecutive season, Azusa Pacific will host the NCAA Division II Baseball West Regional, as the Cougars also earned the No. 2 seed again and a first-round matchup with No. 5-seed California Baptist.

Azusa Pacific enters the postseason ranked third nationally in both the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper coaches poll and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association rankings after repeating as Pacific West Conference champion and finishing the regular season with a 39-9 overall record (29-9 PacWest).

The 2018 West Regional features three PacWest teams, with No. 4-seed Point Loma joining 2017 regional participants Azusa Pacific and California Baptist, along with three teams representing the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA). Cal State Monterey Bay was the CCAA's regular-season champion, and the Otters claimed the No. 1 seed in the regional, which also features CCAA Tournament champion and No. 3 seed UC San Diego along with No. 6 seed Chico State.

The six-team, double-elimination tournament begins with three games on Thursday, May 17, with Azusa Pacific and California Baptist's fifth meeting this year kicking off tournament action at 11:00 a.m. Cal State Monterey Bay takes on Chico State in the second game of the opening day at 3:00 p.m., and UC San Diego takes on Point Loma in the final game of the day.

Azusa Pacific is in its fourth year of active NCAA Division II membership, and the 2018 baseball regional is the 11th NCAA regional postseason event hosted by Azusa Pacific. No other school in the West Region has hosted more than four regional postseason events during the four-year stretch.

Participating Teams

#1 seed: Cal State Monterey Bay (38-16) | Roster | Schedule | Stats
#2 seed: Azusa Pacific (39-9) | Roster | Schedule | Stats
#3 seed: UC San Diego (38-15) | Roster | Schedule | Stats
#4 seed: Point Loma (33-16) | Roster | Schedule | Stats
#5 seed: California Baptist (33-17) | Roster | Schedule | Stats
#6 seed: Chico State (31-22) | Roster | Schedule | Stats

Schedule & Bracket

Bracket (PDF) | Online bracket:(NCAA.com)

Thursday, May 17
Game 2 (11:00 a.m.): #2 Azusa Pacific vs. #5 California Baptist
Game 1 (3:00 p.m.): #1 Cal State Monterey Bay vs. #6 Chico State
Game 3 (7:00 p.m.): #3 UC San Diego vs. #4 Point Loma

Friday, May 18
Game 4 (11:00 a.m.): Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2
Game 5 (3:00 p.m.): Winner Game 1 vs. Loser Game 3
Game 6 (7:00 p.m.): Winner Game 2 vs. Winner Game 3

Saturday, May 19
Game 7 (11:00 a.m.): Teams TBA
Game 8 (3:00 p.m.): Teams TBA
Game 9 (7:00 p.m.): Teams TBA

Monday, May 21
Game 10 (12:00 p.m.): Teams TBA
Game 11 (if necessary): Teams TBA