FULLERTON – Seeking its third straight NAIA Avista College World Series appearance, the Hope International baseball program takes on a formidable 49-game schedule as the season begins later this month.
The Royals open the campaign with 10 straight road or neutral site games, before welcoming Whittier College to the friendly confines of Duane Winters field on Tuesday, February 10.
Key Games
• vs. #11 William Carey – Jan. 30
• #19 Mid-America Christian – Jan. 31
#1 LSU Shreveport (2) – Jan. 31 & Feb. 1
#15 Arizona Christian (4) – Apr. 10 & 11
Strength of Schedule
• The GSAC had two teams qualify for the NAIA Tournament in 2025 – Hope International and Arizona Christian.
• Hope International won the Lewiston Regional, defeating the likes of Oregon Tech, host Lewis-Clark State and Wayland Baptist to advance to the Avista College World Series. The Royals came up short in capturing a second straight national title, but won a pair of games against Cumberlands (Ky.) before falling twice to eventual national champion LSU Shreveport.
• Preseason No. 1 LSU Shreveport headlines the HIU 2026 schedule. The Royals play the Pilots twice on the road, in addition to neutral site games against No. 11 William Carey and No. 19 Mid-America Christian at Pilot Field.
• As part of HIU's season-opening 10-game roadtrip, the team also plays Simpson in a four-game series and Texas A&M-Texarcana twice.
• HIU also has a three-game home-and-home series against NCAA Division II program Cal Poly Pomona from February 13-15.
• The first GSAC games take place against The Master's in a four-game series February 26-28 at Duane Winters Field.
• HIU faces No. 15 Arizona Christian on the road in a four-game GSAC series on April 10-11.
Location Breakdown
• 23 home games
• 24 road games
• 2 neutral site games
Notes
• Hope International is ranked No. 4 in the 2026 NAIA preseason poll.
• The Royals finished the 2025 season 48-10 overall and 22-2 in the GSAC. They won both the conference regular season and tournament titles.
• HIU has reached the postseason in six straight years, not counting the 2020 COVID-shortened campaign.
• The team's longest homestand is seven straight games from February 20-28, hosting Westcliff and The Master's.
• Head coach Larry Mahoney is 169-52 in four seasons, needing 31 wins to reach milestone No. 200. The program is 362-206 overall, and 38 wins shy of 400.
