LA MIRADA, Calif. --- Two conference titles, three postseason appearances, and historic individual accolades highlighted a very successful Fall 2025 season for Biola University Athletics.
The Eagles wrapped up fall sports in December, leading rivals Azusa Pacific by a wide margin in the annual Cornerstone Cup rivalry series and sitting fourth in the
PacWest Conference Hogue Commissioner's Cup standings.
"We are excited about the strong performance of our teams in the Cornerstone Cup vs. APU," said associate vice president Bethany Miller. "Coach Joey O'Keefe led our men's soccer team to a 2–0 sweep, and we have had all fall teams contributing to our lead."
Cross country stood as the biggest highlight of the season, with both the men's and women's teams sweeping the PacWest Conference Championships. The team victories were paired with individual race championships from Bethany Mapes and Melt von Molendorff.
Biola last achieved a four-way sweep of the team and individual titles in 2022. This championship marked the
women's fourth consecutive PacWest title — tying a league record — while the
men earned their fourth conference crown since joining the PacWest in 2017.
"This sweep of the PacWest Cross Country Championships is meaningful for multiple reasons," said Miller. "It is beautiful to see the competitive success of these student-athletes; they love and care for each other and their growth in Christ. And 2025 marks a decade of Coach Henning's leadership of these two programs. They have had amazing competitive success, and we see our alumni from these programs thriving in life and their faith."
Both programs qualified for the NCAA West Regional Championships, with the women finishing fourth to advance to the NCAA National Championship meet for the fourth straight season.
Mapes made history by becoming the first Biola runner to win a regional championship, taking first place in Monmouth, Oregon. Head coach Sean Henning was named PacWest Coach of the Year, while the team earned 11 All-PacWest honors. The PacWest conference recognized Mapes and von Molendorff as conference runners of the year, and
Grant Miller and
Marcin Stanglewicz also captured individual league honors.
In its first season under head coach Jens Cole, the Biola men's water polo team reached the WWPA Championship match and collected several key individual honors. Gavin McKenzie led the way and earned ACWPC NCAA Division II All-American First Team recognition for his outstanding season.
During the team's championship run, Joshua Dachenhausen, Adam LaVoy and McKenzie were each named to the WWPA All-Tournament Team. That trio, along with Caleb Hernandez and freshman Noah Ryznar, also earned postseason league awards following the regular season.
Volleyball and soccer narrowly missed postseason competition but still produced notable highlights. Men's soccer punctuated the year with a 2–0 record against long-time rival Azusa Pacific in the programs' final season together in NCAA Division II. A
home sweep of APU and a
celebration of the legacy of long-time head coach Aaron Seltzer also put Biola Volleyball in the spotlight in the fall.
The fall season also featured several community-focused events, including scarf giveaways and a faculty appreciation night at soccer, as well as a breast cancer awareness night and giveaway at volleyball.
"One of our greatest joys, and primary purposes, is to provide great events for our campus and external community," said Miller. "Our promo nights have been unique and fun, and we see Biola spirit and belonging growing among our students in a meaningful way."
More details on team and individual academic and athletic honors from the fall season are available on the Biola Athletics Hall of Highlights webpage.
