Brent Mutis
CapU Blues sports info
They've put in the work on the hardwood and the Capilano Blues women's and men's basketball teams get to test themselves for real in just a few days as the 2025-26 PACWEST basketball season gets underway this week across B.C.
BLUES SCHEDULE HIGHLIGHTS:
Oct. 17-18 - Season opener at Douglas College. Women's games start at 6 p.m. Friday and 5 p.m. Saturday
Oct. 31 - Blues home opener! Championship banner raising for Blues men's team prior to 8 p.m. men's tip-off
Nov. 6 - Thursday home game; Blues host Langara College with games beginning at 6 p.m.
Jan. 16-17 - First games of 2026; Blues host Okanagan College
Feb. 21 - Regular season finale; CapU Athletics honours graduating student-athletes
For the Blues men's team, they enter the new campaign with the rest of the conference squarely taking aim at them as the defending PACWEST conference champions. Capilano, behind the standout performance of captain and eventual tournament MVP Ahmad Athman, claimed their second PACWEST crown in three seasons with a thrilling victory on home court March 1, a 75-70 triumph over rival Vancouver Island University.
The Blues men will enter 2025-26 without Athman, who moved to pursue a professional opportunity overseas, as well as 6-foot-5 guard Arshya Ghasemi who transferred to the University of Waterloo to play for the Warriors and complete an engineering degree. CapU will again count on two-time PACWEST first-team all-star Kash Lang. The Idaho product has averaged over 15 points and almost five rebounds per game in two seasons. The Blues will also get major minutes out of 6-foot-11 centre Zach Klim and look forward to the contribution of 6-foot-6 Spanish international Alfonso Reyes.
On the women's side, the Blues have significant veteran presence with forwards Maddy Coffin and Sereena Hothi, as well as guard Lauren Tomlinson going into their final seasons. Czech international Barcha Hnizdilova is going into her third season and is already a top-five Blues career rebounder while Australian product Mia Parkin is coming off a 2025 PACWEST Rookie of the Year award.
Newcomers Lucia Lopez, a 6-foot-1 native of Spain, and Cassiel Penalosa, an incoming transfer guard who has USports experience, should factor on the scoresheet most nights.
Each team has already put some exhibition play under their belts with the women's team scoring wins over St. Mary's University of Alberta and Canadian Mennonite University of Manitoba. The Blues men earned wins over the same two teams and have also played an exhibition against the Fraser Valley Mountaineers, a men's club based in Abbotsford.
As always, Capilano students, staff and faculty have free admission to all Blues home games which are played at the Centre for Sport and Wellness. CLICK HERE for more game day information.
