In his seven years as PLNU Baseball Head Coach, Justin James has led the program to new heights.
- 224-107-1 overall record (.676)
- 5 NCAA West Regional appearances in every full season played (2019, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025)
- 2 NCAA West Region championships (2022, 2024)
- 2 NCAA Division II World Series appearances (2022, 2024)
- NCAA National Runner-Up (2022)
- 3 PacWest championships (2022, 2023, 2024)
- PacWest Tournament champions (2024)
- Postseason Coaching Experience (5 College World Series Appearances, 9 Regionals)
- 2x ABCA/ATEC West Regional Coach of the Year (2022, 2024)
- PacWest Coach of the Year (2022)
- 3 West Region Players of the Year (Baxter Halligan - 2022, Jakob Christian - 2023, Scott Anderson - 2024)
- 3 PacWest Players of the Year (Baxter Halligan - 2022, Jakob Christian - 2023, Scott Anderson - 2024)
- 3 PacWest Pitchers of the Year (Zack Noll - 2019, Baxter Halligan - 2022, Dylan Miller - 2024)
- National Pitcher of the Year (Baxter Halligan - 2022)
- National Player of the Year (Jakob Christian - 2023)
- 10 All-Americans
- 28 All-West Region selections
- 47 All-PacWest selections
In 2022, PLNU won its first-ever PacWest Conference championship and NCAA Regional title in route to finishing as National Runner-Up at the NCAA Division II World Series. Along the way, the team set program and PacWest records for most wins (51) in a single season, making the deepest postseason run of any PacWest baseball team in history.
After the season, pitcher Zachary Veen (18th Round, Pick 534) was drafted by the Minnesota Twins, while third baseman Otto Kemp signed with the Philadelphia Phillies.
Pitcher/Outfielder Baxter Halligan and Veen became PLNU's first-ever selections to the D2CCA Baseball All-American Team, while Halligan and pitcher Cole Hillier earned ABCA and NCBWA All-American honors. Halligan was also named PacWest Player, Pitcher and Male Athlete of the Year.
Hillier, who led the NCAA in saves with 17 on the season, joined Halligan, Kemp and Veen on the ABCA All-West Region Team.
In 2023, Point Loma repeated as PacWest Conference champions and made their second-straight NCAA West Regional appearance.
In addition to his D2CCA Ron Lenz National Player of the Year award, Christian was named PacWest Player of the Year, as well as D2CCA/NCBWA/ABCA West Region Player of the Year.
That was followed up in 2024 with a second West Region championship and NCAA Division II World Series appearance in three seasons. Point Loma also won a third-straight PacWest title before claiming a first-ever PacWest Tournament championship.
Scott Anderson became PLNU's third-straight West Region and PacWest Player of the Year. He earned All-American honors along with Dylan Miller and James Sashin, who led NCAA Division II in saves (18) to set a new program and PacWest single-season record.
Then in 2025, Point Loma made its fourth straight NCAA West Regional appearance, extending its program record. During the season, James surpassed the 200 wins mark as PLNU Head Coach.
In his first season as head coach in 2019, James guided PLNU to a 32-21 record, a pair of postseason victories and into the final game of the NCAA West Regional #2. The Sea Lions ranked as high as No. 2 in the West Region poll, and reached No. 14 in the national rankings.
Under James' leadership, the PLNU pitching staff posted the most strikeouts in a single-season in school history (445) and Zack Noll was named the PacWest Pitcher of the Year. Noll was one of five Sea Lions named to the All-PacWest team in James' first season. Micah Pries and Zack Noll would also earn multiple All-West Region honors before being voted to the NCBWA All-America team.
Pries was then selected by the Cleveland Indians in the 13th round of the 2019 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft, making him the first Sea Lion since 2012 to be drafted.
James' second season was cut short due to the COVID pandemic. At the time, the Sea Lions were playing their best baseball. They were coming off a series win against Holy Names and had nationally ranked Biola on deck. PLNU finished conference play 3-1 (9-8 overall) and in second place in the PacWest standings.
James returned to his alma mater to take over as the head coach of the Sea Lions in the summer of 2018. James has over 13 years of collegiate coaching experience, including two as the pitching coaching at UC San Diego, where he helped lead the Tritons to back-to-back NCAA West Regional Championships.
During his two years in La Jolla, UCSD went 87-36 (.707) and registered a 3.79 team earned run average. Four Tritons off his pitching staffs were selected in the MLB Draft. Kyle Goodbrand (Round 36, Tampa Bay Rays) was selected in 2017, and Cameron Kurz (18, Atlanta Braves), Mitch Hickey (28, New York Mets) and Ted Stuka (39, Baltimore Orioles) all went in 2018.
In 2018, UC San Diego broke the school-record for strikeouts with 528, finishing fourth in the country. UCSD won 40-plus games for a second straight season and collected its CCAA-record seventh championship. The Tritons' 3.93 earned run average that season ranked No. 3 in the West Region and No. 23 nationally.
In his first season with UCSD, James helped the Tritons go 44-19, win the NCAA West Regional and finished as national runners-up. The finish matched the best in program history and the 44 wins were the second-most. James' staff compiled a 3.67 ERA to finish 24th in the country.
Prior to going to UCSD, James served eight seasons as an assistant coach at PLNU, including the last two as the pitching coach. He returned to his alma mater for the 2010 season and helped the team reach the NAIA World Series where they finished third. James has also served in his roles of recruiting, camp coordination and opponent scouting, in addition to many others. Five of his PLNU pupils, Chad Blauer, Ryan Garcia, Ricky Gingras, Clinton Harwick and Steve Winnisk, went on to earn professional contracts.
During the two seasons with James as the pitching coach, the Sea Lions rose up to be one of best staffs, not only in the PacWest, but in NCAA Division II. During the 2016 season, PLNU ranked in the top 10 of four national pitching categories. The staff ranked second nationally in walks allowed per 9 innings (2.16), eighth in strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.23), ninth in WHIP (1.20) and 10th in earned run average (3.15). This season's earned run average marked a drop in over a run since James took over as the Sea Lions went from a 4.17 ERA in 2014 to a 3.83 ERA in 2015 to a 3.15 ERA in 2016. James also helped guide Coleman Huntley III to first team Daktronics All-West Region honors in 2015 and a nomination for the Brett Tomko Pitcher of the Year award after he led NCAA Division II with 13 saves in the regular season. That season, the PLNU pitching staff ranked 19th in the country with 2.78 walks per 9 innings and 27th with five shutouts.
Before returning to PLNU, James spent the two prior seasons assisting the New Mexico Highlands University baseball team under head coach Steve Jones. During that span the Cowboys won 70 games, twice reached the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) tournament championship game and qualified for the NCAA Division II Western regionals in 2009. During that year the Cowboys lead NCAA Division II in doubles (181) and team batting average (.377).
In addition to his coaching duties at NMHU, James was the strength and conditioning coach for the university's athletic teams and was in charge of game management, which included setting up every home sporting event up to NCAA standards and RMAC regulations. He also ran the school's intramural program.
James has earned USA Baseball appointments in two summers. He was in charge of the 11U Southwest squad during the National Team Identification Series (NTIS) in 2016 and the 13U Southern California NTIS team in 2017, both in Cary, N.C.
James prepped at South Pasadena High School where he earned two varsity letters and was named the Tigers MVP in 1999. He helped lead SPHS to their first league title in 31 years and won the Pat Murphy Award and all-league outfield honors.
After high school James played collegiately at Citrus College (2000-2001) under Skip Claprood in Glendora, Calif. At Citrus he earned the coaches award in 2001 before he transferred and pitched at Point Loma Nazarene University (2002-03). At PLNU James helped the Sea Lions to two regional playoff berths and the Region II championship game in ’03. He made 17 appearances and posted a 3.95 ERA in his senior season. He would go on to earn his degree in History from PLNU.
After Point Loma, James was the pitching coach at local Claremont High School for two seasons before moving onto New Mexico Highlands University. In 2009 he earned a Master's degree in exercise and sports sciences/sports administration at NMHU.
James was also previously the head coach of the Myrtle Beach Summer Collegiate Baseball Team - The Surfriders.
James is married to his wife Lindsey and the couple has a pair of daughters, Kinley and Ellie.
| School |
Year |
Overall |
Conference |
Conference Finish |
Postseason/Honors/Notes |
| Point Loma |
2019 |
32-21 |
18-13 |
3rd |
NCAA West Region #2 Runner-Up |
| Point Loma |
2020 |
9-8 |
3-1 |
N/A - COVID-19 |
N/A - COVID-19 |
| Point Loma |
2021 |
11-21 |
8-14 |
4th-SoCal Pod |
None |
| Point Loma |
2022 |
51-10 |
25-7 |
1st |
NCAA West Region champion, National Runner-Up, PacWest champion |
| Point Loma |
2023 |
36-16 |
22-8 |
1st |
NCAA West Regional, PacWest champion |
| Point Loma |
2024 |
46-13-1 |
25-6-1 |
1st |
NCAA West Region champion, PacWest champion, PacWest Tournament champion |
| Point Loma |
2025 |
39-18 |
32-12 |
2nd |
NCAA West Region #1 Runner-Up |
| Total |
7 Seasons |
224-107-1 |
133-61-1 |
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