California Collegiate Athletic Association

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California Collegiate Athletic Association
AssociationNCAA
Founded1938 (1938)
CommissionerAllen Hardison
Sports fielded
  • 13
    • men's: 6
    • women's: 7
DivisionDivision II
No. of teams12 (14 in 2026)
HeadquartersAliso Viejo, California
RegionCalifornia
Websitegoccaa.org
Locations
Location of teams in

The California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level.[1] All of its current members are public universities, but two private institutions will join in July 2026.

It was founded in December 1938 and began competition in 1939. The commissioner of the CCAA is Allen Hardison. CCAA offices are located in Aliso Viejo, California.[2] The CCAA is the most successful conference in NCAA Division II, as its former and current members have won 155 National Championships.[3]

History

California Collegiate Athletic Association is located in California
Cal Poly Humboldt
Cal Poly Humboldt
Cal Poly Pomona
Cal Poly Pomona
Chico State
Chico State
Cal State Dominguez Hills
Cal State Dominguez Hills
Cal State East Bay
Cal State East Bay
Cal State LA
Cal State LA
Cal State Monterey Bay
Cal State Monterey Bay
Cal State San Bernardino
Cal State San Bernardino
Cal State San Marcos
Cal State San Marcos
⠀⠀Stanislaus State
⠀⠀Stanislaus State
SF State
SF State
UC Merced
UC Merced
Fresno Pacific
Fresno Pacific
Menlo
Menlo
Location of CCAA members:
– Full member
– Future member

Recent events

On November 14, 2023, the University of California, Merced had accepted an invitation to join the CCAA, beginning the 2025–26 academic year.[4]

On January 22, 2025, Sonoma State University announced that it would be ceasing all athletic operations following the conclusion of the 2024–25 athletic year.[5]

On June 13, 2025, Fresno Pacific University received an invitation to join the CCAA, beginning the 2026–27 academic year.[6]

In addition to Fresno Pacific University joining the CCAA, Menlo College announced that they will be joining the conference, and starting sports in the fall of 2026.

Chronological timeline

Member schools

Current members

As of 2025, the CCAA has 12 full members, all of which are public schools. Reclassifying members listed in yellow.

Institution Athletic
brand
Location[a] Founded Affiliation Enrollment
(Fall 2024)[7]
Nickname Joined[b] Colors
California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt Cal Poly Humboldt Arcata 1913 Public[c] 6,045 Lumberjacks 2006    
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona Cal Poly Pomona Pomona 1938 27,196 Broncos 1967    
California State University, Chico Chico State Chico 1887 14,581 Wildcats 1998    
California State University, Dominguez Hills Cal State Dominguez Hills Carson 1960 14,262 Toros 1980    
California State University, East Bay Cal State East Bay Hayward 1957 10,892 Pioneers 2009      
California State University, Los Angeles Cal State Los Angeles Los Angeles 1947 22,740 Golden Eagles 1950;
1974[d]
   
California State University, Monterey Bay Cal State Monterey Bay Seaside 1994 7,302 Otters 2004    
California State University, San Bernardino Cal State San Bernardino or
CSUSB
San Bernardino 1965 17,900 Coyotes 1991    
California State University San Marcos Cal State San Marcos San Marcos 1989 14,655 Cougars 2015    
California State University, Stanislaus Stanislaus State Turlock 1957 9,295 Warriors 1998      
San Francisco State University San Francisco State San Francisco 1899 22,357 Gators 1998    
University of California, Merced UC Merced Merced 2005 Public[e] 9,110 Golden Bobcats 2025    
Notes
  1. All cities are located within the State of California.
  2. Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.
  3. Part of the California State University System.
  4. Cal State LA left the CCAA after the 1968–69 school year to join the Pacific Coast Athletic Association (PCAA; now known as the Big West Conference), but rejoined in the 1974–75 school year.
  5. Part of the University of California System.

Future members

The CCAA will have two new full members, both being private schools:

Institution Athletic
brand
Location[a] Founded Affiliation Enrollment Nickname Joining[b] Colors Current
conference
Fresno Pacific University Fresno Pacific Fresno 1944 Mennonite 2,889 Sunbirds 2026     Pacific West (PacWest)
Menlo College[c] Menlo Atherton 1927 Nonsectarian 810 Oaks    
Notes
  1. All cities are located within the State of California, unless noted in parentheses the state where the institution is located by that city.
  2. Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.
  3. Menlo is currently in the process of reclassifying to Division II, and will become a full member in 2027.

Former members

The CCAA had 17 former full members, all but four were public schools. Institutional names and nicknames reflect those used in the final academic year of CCAA membership:

Institution Athletic
brand
Location[a] Founded Affiliation Enrollment Nickname Joined[b] Left[c] Current
conference
California Polytechnic State University Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
or Cal Poly
San Luis Obispo 1901 Public[d] 21,306 Mustangs 1945 1994 Big West (BWC)[e]
California State University, Bakersfield Cal State Bakersfield Bakersfield 1965 8,720 Roadrunners 1972 2007 Big West (BWC)[e]
California State University, Fresno Fresno State Fresno 1911 25,341 Bulldogs 1939 1969 Mountain West (MW)[e]
(Pac-12[e] in 2026)
California State University, Fullerton Cal State Fullerton Fullerton 1957 40,235 Titans 1967 1974 Big West (BWC)[e]
California State University, Long Beach Cal State Long Beach
or Long Beach State
Long Beach 1949 37,776 49ers[f] 1956 1969 Big West (BWC)[e]
California State University, Northridge Cal State Northridge Northridge 1958 39,916 Matadors 1961 1990 Big West (BWC)[e]
University of California, Davis UC Davis Davis 1905 Public[g] 36,441 Aggies 1998 2004 Big West (BWC)[e]
(Mountain West[e] in 2026)
University of California, Riverside UC Riverside Riverside 1954 22,921 Highlanders 1969 2000 Big West (BWC)[e]
University of California, San Diego UC San Diego
or UCSD
La Jolla 1960 33,735 Tritons 2000 2020 Big West (BWC)[e]
University of California, Santa Barbara UC Santa Barbara
or UCSB
Santa Barbara[h] 1891 24,346 Gauchos 1939 1964 Big West (BWC)[e]
Chapman University Chapman Orange 1861 Disciples of Christ 10,001 Panthers 1978 1993 Southern California (SCIAC)[i]
Grand Canyon University Grand Canyon Phoenix
(Arizona)
1949 Nondenominational/
For-profit[j]
25,000 Antelopes 1994 2004 Mountain West (MW)[e]
University of the Pacific Pacific Stockton 1851 United Methodist 6,652 Tigers 1946 1949 West Coast (WCC)[e]
Pepperdine University Pepperdine Malibu[k] 1937 Churches of Christ 6,000 Waves 1945 1954 West Coast (WCC)[e]
San Diego State University Cal State San Diego
or San Diego State
San Diego 1897 Public[d] 35,578 Aztecs 1939 1969 Mountain West (MW)[e]
(Pac-12[e] in 2026)
San Jose State University Cal State San Jose
or San Jose State
San Jose 1857 33,025 Spartans 1939 1950 Mountain West (MW)[e]
Sonoma State University Sonoma State Rohnert Park 1960 6,566 Seawolves 1998 2025 N/A[l]
Notes
  1. All cities are located within the State of California, unless noted in parentheses the state where the institution is located by that city.
  2. Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.
  3. Represents the calendar year when spring sports competition ends.
  4. Part of the California State University System.
  5. Currently an NCAA Division I athletic conference.
  6. Long Beach State fully rebranded its athletic program as "The Beach" since the 2020–21 school year.
  7. Part of the University of California System.
  8. Mailing address; the campus is in the adjacent community of Isla Vista.
  9. Currently an NCAA Division III athletic conference.
  10. Grand Canyon's for-profit status is disputed. The U.S. Department of Education considers it to be for-profit, but the Internal Revenue Service, the state of Arizona, and the NCAA all consider it a nonprofit.
  11. Mailing address; the campus is in unincorporated Los Angeles County.
  12. Sonoma State dropped its athletics program after the 2024–25 school year.

Membership timeline

 Full member (all sports)   Full member (non-football)   Associate member (football)   Associate member (sport) 

Sports sponsored

The CCAA sponsors seven sports for women and six sports for men. Cross country, soccer, and volleyball are fall sports; basketball is a winter sport; golf, outdoor track & field, softball, and baseball are spring sports. Throughout the years, CCAA teams have won 155 NCAA championships in their sports, which is best among all Division II conferences.

The CCAA has a Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, which is made up of student-athletes from each member institution.

The following divisional format is used for baseball, men's and women's basketball, and women's volleyball.
North
  • Cal Poly Humboldt
  • Chico State
  • Cal State East Bay
  • Stanislaus State
  • San Francisco State
  • UC Merced
South
  • Cal Poly Ponoma
  • Cal State Dominguez Hills
  • Cal State Los Angeles
  • Cal State Monterey Bay
  • Cal State San Bernardino
  • Cal State San Marcos
Teams in California Collegiate Athletic Association competition
SportMen'sWomen's
Baseball
9
Basketball
12
12
Cross country
9
11
Golf
8
5
Soccer
11
12
Softball
9
Track & Field Outdoor
8
12
Volleyball
12

Men's sponsored sports by school

School Baseball Basketball Cross
Country
Golf Soccer Track
& Field
Outdoor
Total
CCAA
Sports
Cal Poly HumboldtNoYesYesNoYesYes4
Cal Poly PomonaYesYesYesNoYesYes5
Cal State Dominguez HillsYesYesNoYesYesNo4
Cal State East BayYesYesYesYesYesYes6
Cal State Los AngelesYesYesYesNoYesYes5
Cal State Monterey BayYesYesYesYesYesNo5
Cal State San BernardinoYesYesNoYesYesNo4
Cal State San MarcosYesYesYesYesYesYes6
Chico StateYesYesYesYesYesYes6
San Francisco StateNoYesYesNoNoYes3
Stanislaus StateYesYesYesYesYesYes6
UC MercedNoYesNoYesYesYes4
Totals9129811857
Future members
Fresno PacificYesYesYesNoYesYes5
MenloYesYesNoYesYesNo4

Men's varsity sports not sponsored by the California Collegiate Athletic Association which are played by CCAA schools:

SchoolSwimming
& Diving
TennisTrack
& Field
Indoor
Volleyball[a]Water
Polo[b]
Wrestling
Cal Poly HumboldtMPSF
Cal State Los AngelesIND
Fresno PacificPCSCPacWestWWPA
MenloPacWestMPSFMPSF
San Francisco StateMPSF
UC MercedMPSFWWPA
  1. Effective Division I sport; the NCAA's top-level championship is open to members of Divisions I and II.
  2. Effective Division I sport; the NCAA men's championships are open to members of all three NCAA divisions.

Women's sponsored sports by school

A CSUEB soccer player marking a University of California, San Diego attacker
School Basketball Cross
Country
Golf Soccer Softball Track
& Field
Outdoor
Volleyball Total
CCAA
Sports
Cal Poly HumboldtYesYesNoYesYesYesYes6
Cal Poly PomonaYesYesNoYesNoYesYes5
Cal State Dominguez HillsYesNoNoYesYesYesYes5
Cal State East BayYesYesYesYesYesYesYes7
Cal State Los AngelesYesYesYesYesNoYesYes6
Cal State Monterey BayYesYesYesYesYesYesYes7
Cal State San BernardinoYesYesNoYesYesYesYes6
Cal State San MarcosYesYesYesYesYesYesYes7
Chico StateYesYesYesYesYesYesYes7
San Francisco StateYesYesNoYesYesYesYes6
Stanislaus StateYesYesNoYesYesYesYes6
UC MercedYesYesNoYesNoYesYes5
Totals12115129121273
Future members
Fresno PacificYesYesNoYesNoYesYes5
MenloYesNoYesYesYesNoYes5

Women's varsity sports not sponsored by the California Collegiate Athletic Association which are played by CCAA schools:

SchoolBeach
Volleyball[a]
RowingSwimming
& Diving
TennisTrack
& Field
Indoor
Water
Polo[b]
Wrestling[c]
Cal Poly HumboldtGNAC
Cal State Dominguez HillsIND
Cal State East BayPCSCWWPA
Cal State Los AngelesINDPacWestIND
Cal State Monterey BayWWPA
Fresno PacificPCSCPacWestWWPA
MenloPacWestMPSF
Stanislaus StatePacWestIND
UC MercedTBAWWPA
  1. Effective Division I sport; the NCAA championship is open to members of all three NCAA divisions.
  2. Effective Division I sport; the NCAA women's championships are open to members of all three NCAA divisions.
  3. Effective Division I sport. The NCAA championship is open to members of all three NCAA divisions through the 2026–27 school year. After that, a separate Division III championship will be established, with members of Divisions I and II continuing to compete for a single team championship.

CCAA championships

Locations of CCAA members, 2009–2015
School CCAA
Championships
(thru 6/2014)[8]
Cal Poly Pomona 58
Chico State 52
Cal State Los Angeles 34
Cal State Dominguez Hills 31
Cal State San Bernardino 24
Sonoma State 14
Cal Poly Humboldt 11
Stanislaus State 9
Cal State Monterey Bay 9
San Francisco State 1
Cal State East Bay 0
Cal State San Marcos 0

Basketball

Football

NCAA championships

School Team Individual Appearances
Men Women Total Men Women Total Men Women Co–ed Total
Cal Poly Pomona 5 7 12 10 15 25 87 75 0 162
Cal State Dominguez Hills 1 2 3 0 1 1 26 46 0 72
Cal State East Bay 1 1 2 16 6 22 41 28 0 69
Cal State Los Angeles 4 0 4 34 37 71 77 79 0 156
Cal State Monterey Bay 1 0 1 0 0 0 9 11 0 20
Cal State San Bernardino 0 1 1 1 0 1 25 29 0 54
Cal State San Marcos 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 2
Chico State 6 0 6 52 7 59 131 85 0 216
Humboldt State 1 4 5 10 8 18 55 58 0 113
San Francisco State 1 0 1 15 4 19 70 39 0 109
Sonoma State 2 1 3 0 0 0 42 63 0 105
Stanislaus State 0 0 0 4 7 11 51 47 0 98

Conference facilities

School Baseball
Stadium
Capacity Basketball
Arena
Capacity Soccer/
Track & Field
Stadium
Capacity
Cal Poly Humboldt
non-baseball school
Lumberjack Arena 2,000 Redwood Bowl
& College Creek Field
7,000
N/A
Cal Poly Pomona Scolinos Field 1,000 Kellogg Arena 3,000 Kellogg Field 2,000
Chico State Nettleton Stadium 4,200 Acker Gymnasium 1,997 University Soccer Stadium
& Chico State Stadium
3,800
6,000
Cal State Dominguez Hills Toro Field 500 Torodome / Dave Yanai Court 3,602 Toro Stadium 3,000
Cal State East Bay Pioneer Field CSUEB Physical Education Complex 3,500 Pioneer Stadium 5,000
Cal State LA Reeder Field 500 Eagle's Nest Arena 3,400 Jesse Owens Track 5,000
Cal State Monterey Bay CSUMB Baseball/Softball Complex The Kelp Bed 1,000 CSUMB Soccer Complex 660
Cal State San Bernardino Fiscalini Field
& San Manuel Stadium
2,000 Coussoulis Arena 4,140 Coyote Premier Field 300
Cal State San Marcos CSUSM Baseball Field 1,000 The Sports Center 1,400 Mangrum Track & Soccer Field
Stanislaus State Warrior Baseball Field 1,500 Ed & Bertha Fitzpatrick Arena 2,000 Warrior Stadium & Al Brenda Track 2,000
San Francisco State Maloney Field 100 Main Gym at Don Nasser Family Plaza 2,000 Cox Stadium 5,000
UC Merced
non-baseball school
Hostetler Court 600 Bobcat Field[a] N/a
  1. Bobcat Field is used for soccer only. UC Merced has no on-campus track and field venue.

See also

References

  1. "NCAA Division II WebPages". Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. Archived from the original on June 9, 2008. Retrieved September 12, 2008.
  2. "Commissioner's Office". CCAA. Archived from the original on October 19, 2008. Retrieved September 12, 2008.
  3. "NCAA Champions from the CCAA". CCAA. Archived from the original on October 19, 2008. Retrieved September 12, 2008.
  4. "California Collegiate Athletic Association Set to Add University of California, Merced" (Press release). UC Merced Golden Bobcats. November 14, 2023. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
  5. "'It's just sad': Former coaches, athletes react to Sonoma State University decision to cut all athletic programs" (Press release). The Press Democrat. January 22, 2025. Retrieved January 22, 2025.
  6. "Fresno Pacific Joins the CCAA". Fresno Pacific Sunbirds. June 12, 2025. Retrieved June 13, 2025.
  7. "Enrollment | CSU". www.calstate.edu. Retrieved August 2, 2025.
  8. "All-Time CCAA Champions" (PDF). CCAA. Retrieved November 25, 2014.
  9. "Guachos Plan Sports Competition Despite League's Suspension". Santa Barbara News-Press. Santa Barbara, California. September 27, 1942. p. 8. Retrieved January 25, 2025 via Newspapers.com Open access icon.
  10. "Fresno State's Bulldogs Bite On Mustangs; Sweep CCAA Conference Crown With 34-6 Victory". Santa Maria Times. Santa Maria, California. November 12, 1955. p. 2. Retrieved January 24, 2025 via Newspapers.com Open access icon.
  11. "Grid Standings". The Fresno Bee. Fresno, California. November 21, 1955. p. 21A. Retrieved January 24, 2025 via Newspapers.com Open access icon.
  12. "College Standings". Santa Barbara News-Press. Santa Barbara, California. November 25, 1957. p. B5. Retrieved January 24, 2025 via Newspapers.com Open access icon.
  13. "Mustangs Rate Best Small College Team In West". The Tribune. San Luis Obispo, California. November 28, 1957. p. 7. Retrieved January 24, 2025 via Newspapers.com Open access icon.
  14. "College Grid Standings". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. November 25, 1958. p. 5, part IV. Retrieved January 24, 2025 via Newspapers.com Open access icon.
  15. 2019 San Diego State Football Media Guide (PDF), 2019