Brad Langston led the UC Riverside women’s basketball team to its largest ever season-to-season turnaround as interim head coach last season. Now, he’s staying in Riverside. Announced by the university on Sept. 27, Langston has agreed to a five-year contract to become the Highlanders new women’s basketball head coach. “I am incredibly excited and grateful for the opportunity to lead this program,” said Langston, who guided UCR to an 18-14 overall record and a third-place finish in the Big West Conference last season. “It has been an amazing journey with this team, and I am proud of the culture we have built together. I am looking forward to continuing to grow this program, pushing our limits on the court, and supporting each student-athlete’s development as both basketball players and individuals.” The 12-game turnaround – the largest in the program’s history – came after preseason predictions had UC Riverside finishing 10th in the Big West. The Highlanders surprised many, winning eight of their last 10 games of the regular season to finish right behind Hawaii and UC Irvine. “This is a special group, and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for us,” Langston said. The Highlanders had four all-Big West selections and earned their first Women’s National Invitation Tournament (WNIT) berth since the 2015-16 season. “We are incredibly proud of what coach Brad Langston has accomplished,” UCR athletics director Wesley Mallette said. “The success of our women’s basketball team on the court has been outstanding, and Brad has cultivated a culture that has and will propel the team to even greater heights.” Langston joined UCR as an assistant coach in 2020 and was thrust into the interim head coach role after the abrupt departure of Nicole Powell, a former three-time All-American and a WNBA champion who took a leave of absence from the team during the 2022-23 season and did not return. The Highlanders posted a 27-49 record in three official seasons under Powell, including a promising 14-11 mark in 2021-22 before a disastrous 6-26 finish in her final season. Mallette has stated multiple times that Powell’s situation remains a university personnel matter. He has declined further comment. A specialist in scouting and player development, Langston previously was an assistant coach at Grand Canyon University and at the University of Hawaii. Also, a successful prep coach, Langston won five consecutive league titles and reached the CIF State tournament three times as the head coach at West Sacramento High School in the early 2000s. The founder of Evolution Skills Academy, Langston has developed student-athletes ranked among ESPNW’s Top 100 prospects. LANCERS GET RINGS Last season’s California Baptist University women’s basketball players and coaches received their Western Athletic Conference championship rings on Thursday, Sept. 26. Coach Jarrod Olson and Co. got their hands on their new jewelry during a break in the CBU women’s volleyball match at the Dale E. and Sarah Ann Fowler Events Center, a three-set victory over Utah Valley. The Lancers were 28-4 last season, claiming both the WAC regular season and conference tournament titles before losing to No. 2 seed UCLA in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Chloe Webb, the team’s best player last season with a program record 20.2 points per game, signed professionally with Esgueira Aveiro in Portugal. FIVE BRONCOS TEAMS RANKED In the final week of September, the Cal Poly Pomona athletics department had all five fall sports programs nationally ranked for the first time in school history. Topping the list are the Broncos soccer teams, with the women ranked No. 3 and the men ranked No. 7 in the United Soccer Coaches Division II Top 25 polls. The women’s volleyball team is ranked No. 7 in the latest AVCA Division II Top 25 poll, while the men’s cross-country team is No. 20 and the women’s cross-country team enters the rankings for the first time at No. 29 in the latest USTFCCCA Division II Top 30 coaches’ polls. SBVC FOOTBALL FORFEITS A tough start is quickly turning into a difficult season for the San Bernardino Valley College football team. Outscored 130-0 over its first two games, the Wolverines (0-3 overall) were forced to forfeit their Week 3 matchup at Long Beach City because of a lack of available players. The team’s roster currently has fewer than 40 active student-athletes. SBVC also will forfeit this week’s home game against Mt. San Antonio College, a California Community College Athletic Association Southern California Regional finalist last season, in an effort to prepare for a home game against Southwestern on Oct. 12. Pope writes about Inland sports for The Southern California News Group. Follow him @DennisPope on Twitter.