Pacific joins WCC

SAN BRUNO, Calif. -- The University of the Pacific formally joined the West Coast Conference Monday, fielding a team in 10 of the conference's 14 sponsored sports.

With Pacific’s return to the conference, the WCC has the needed six teams to become a softball league. The conference welcomes softball teams from BYU, Loyola Marymount, Pacific, Saint Mary’s, San Diego and Santa Clara, most of which made up the Pacific Coast Softball Conference during the 2013 season.

"We are delighted to be part of the West Coast Conference once again," said University of the Pacific President Pamela A. Eibeck. "This is a conference that celebrates the values we hold dear at Pacific: high-quality academics, great teaching, serious athletic competition and developing the whole student, including their intellectual, social, physical and spiritual growth."

BYU will have new competition for the 2013-14 season as Pacific fields teams in baseball, men's and women's basketball, women's cross country, men's golf, women's soccer, softball, men's and women's tennis and women's volleyball.

"We are excited to welcome back the University of the Pacific in what is another historic day for the West Coast Conference," WCC Commissioner Jamie Zaninovich said. "The return of the University of the Pacific adds a private, like-minded institution to our membership, which shares the common bond of an aligned emphasis on combining excellence in academics and holistic education with excellence in athletics. Pacific has a phenomenal history of competitive success in our conference sports – including men's basketball, as evidenced by their participation in the NCAA tournament this March – and we anticipate continued success in the future."

The West Coast Conference traces its beginnings to 1952, when the California Basketball Association was created to provide a venue for five San Francisco Bay Area schools—including University of the Pacific, Saint Mary's College, University of San Francisco and Santa Clara University—to compete in basketball. The conference expanded to include Loyola Marymount University and Pepperdine University in 1955, becoming the West Coast Athletic Conference. In 1977, the University of Portland joined the WCAC. Gonzaga University and the University of San Diego began competing in the WCAC in 1979 (shortened to WCC in 1989), and Brigham Young joined the West Coast Conference in 2011.

About the West Coast Conference


The West Coast Conference was formed in 1952 and has evolved and grown to become a nationally recognized and competitive force in Division I intercollegiate athletics, with 14 conference-sponsored sports: baseball, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's cross country, men's and women's golf, women's rowing, men's and women's soccer, softball, men's and women's tennis and women's volleyball. The WCC is characterized by the stability of its membership and its unique emphasis on combining excellence in athletics with excellence in academics.  For more information, visit WCCsports.com or follow the West Coast Conference on Twitter @WCCsports.

About University of the Pacific

University of the Pacific is a nationally ranked university with a long tradition of dedicated teaching, small class sizes, practical experience and a vibrant residential life. Founded in 1851, Pacific is the oldest university in California. Its breathtaking Gothic main campus in Stockton is home to seven schools and colleges. Pacific is building a new campus in San Francisco for its acclaimed Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry, and its Sacramento campus houses the McGeorge School of Law. Total university enrollment is about 6,500. For more information about University of the Pacific, visit www.pacific.edu.