By Colin Fields
Palm Springs, Calif. ~ Last summer, Ryan Mota enjoyed a historic season for the Palm Springs POWER and that success carried over into his collegiate season for NCAA Division II Cal Baptist. The redshirt junior received First Team All Pac West honors in just his first season with the team.
The Riverside City College transfer mashed a record-shattering 13 home runs with the POWER in 2017 and his bat stayed hot at Cal Baptist where he hit .298 with 9 Home runs and 40 RBI in just 47 games.
Mota and the Lancers made it to the Division II playoffs for the fifth consecutive season, their final season in Division II. Cal Baptist will move up to Division I in the Western Athletic Conference for the 2019 season.
The move means that Mota, who began his collegiate career as a redshirt freshman at San Diego State, will return to Division I for the first time since the 2015 season. It has been a long journey back for the power hitting first baseman, but the future remains bright for the POWER alumni as he awaits his eventual return to Division I during his senior season.
