Chaminade University today announced it will add Men’s Baseball and Women’s Beach Volleyball to its Athletics offerings for the 2023-2024 academic year.
After an absence of more than 40 years, Chaminade Baseball will join the Pacific West Conference. In addition, Chaminade will become one of only two schools in the PacWest and one of three Division II institutions in the West Region to field teams in Beach Volleyball.
“We are incredibly excited to welcome these sports to Chaminade University starting in 2023, the first new additions in 17 years,” said President Dr. Lynn Babington. “Athletics are an important part of the spirit of our campus, and the addition of these new teams will help us to attract even more students interested in excelling in both athletics and academics.”
Chaminade Men’s Baseball
Chaminade University last fielded an intercollegiate baseball in 1980. In their inaugural season, the ’Swords finished 20-6 and earned a berth in the NAIA District 2 Playoffs. However, due to budgetary restrictions, the program dropped to club level status in 1981 before disbanding altogether the following year. The search for a baseball head coach is currently underway.
Chaminade Women’s Beach Volleyball
Chaminade has fielded beach volleyball as an exhibition sport since Spring 2013, playing various Division I schools over the years. Because the conference does not sponsor the sport and the NCAA does not separate beach volleyball into its traditional divisions (I, II, III), Chaminade will compete as an independent and be eligible for national championships at the same level as other high-profile programs. Current women’s volleyball indoor coach Kahala Kabalis Hoke will serve as the head coach of beach volleyball.
Added Chaminade University Director of Athletics Dr. Tom Buning, “This Chaminade University of Honolulu initiative reinforces the co-curricular value of our Silversword athletics to the campus experience. This decision aligns with the university’s mission to serve and educate the local community which has an abundant source of talented interscholastic athletes who deserve the opportunity to compete at the collegiate level while earning a degree and staying close to home.”
Both baseball and beach volleyball will begin competition in the spring of 2024, raising the number of intercollegiate programs at Chaminade to 12.
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About Chaminade University
Chaminade University of Honolulu believes in the power of education to drive positive change, broaden perspectives and deepen our understanding of one another. With an emphasis on transformative service-learning experiences, we prepare students to serve as tomorrow’s leaders, inspiring and challenging them to use their minds and their hearts to help build stronger and more just communities. We are proud to serve as Hawai‘i’s only Marianist university, and rely on these values to guide us in delivering a high-quality education with an individualized approach and a focus on excellence, innovation and change. Established in 1955, we offer more than 30 undergraduate and graduate programs, including doctoral degrees in education, psychology and nursing practice. Learn more at chaminade.edu.
