BEAUMONT, Texas — The Lamar University Cardinals open the 2025 season on the road at California State University, Bakersfield for a three-game series this weekend.
 
For the first time since 2005, Lamar was picked to finish first in the Southland Conference preseason poll.
 
The Cards had four players named to the SLC's preseason all-conference team — Zak Skinner (first team), Brayden Evans (first team), Kyle Moseley (first team) and Matt Ryan (second team).
 
Lamar, the defending regular season conference champs, posted a 44-15 overall record last spring and a 17-7 mark in SLC play.
 
The 44 wins were the fourth-most in program history. It also marked the first time the Cardinals posted 40 or more wins since 2004.
 
Lamar has qualified for the conference tournament the last four straight seasons.
 
Head coach Will Davis enters his ninth season at the helm of the program.
 
ROADRUNNERS AT A GLANCE
 
CSUB finished last spring with a 15-38 record while it went 8-22 in The Big West play.
 
The Roadrunners are led by first-year head coach Jordon Banfield, who is seeking to have the first winning season since 2017 when the program finished 32-24 overall after making a trip to the Western Athletic Conference tournament.
 
Banfield was named the fourth head coach in program history, taking over the helm in July 2024.
 
CSUB posted a .260 average as a team with 471 hits, 11 home runs, 201 runs batted in, and 221 runs scored.
 
The bullpen tallied a 5.07 ERA with three complete games, 398 strikeouts and four saves.
 
CSUB was predicted to finish 10th in The Big West preseason poll after finishing ninth in the league last season.
 
HEAD-TO-HEAD
 
This is the first meeting between both programs.
 
ON THE ROAD
 
This is the second straight year the Cardinals are opening the season on the road.
 
Last season the Cards began the year in Mobile, Ala. to face Southern Indiana, South Alabama and North Alabama.
 
Since 1993, Lamar is 6-3 when opening the season on the road. 
 
OPENING DAY
 
Lamar is 41-21 on opening day since 1952.
 
The Cardinals have won their last six season openers as they are 21-4 since 2000.
 
WEST COAST
 
Since 1977, the Cardinals are 15-14 against programs from the west coast and 8-0 since 2022. This marks Lamar's first trip to the west coast since playing Gonzaga for a three-game series in 2019.