In his first season at the helm, Mast made quite the impression on the Fort Lewis faithful, maintaining the Skyhawks' winning standard and taking an entirely new roster to a 19-12 overall record and a 12-8 record in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play. The Skyhawks opened the year at the prestigious Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic, marking the program's first-ever appearance, and later made a run to the second round of the 2025 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Tournament.
Despite a new look, Fort Lewis' game plan remained the same: score at a high level and force turnovers. Mast improved on the Skyhawks' full-court press, guiding the team to average 12.5 steals, 19.35 turnovers forced, and a +6.9 turnover margin, marks that rank second, sixth, and seventh across all of NCAA Division II. In addition, the Skyhawks dominated the RMAC, forcing 19.8 turnovers, grabbing 13.25 steals, and boasting a +8.6 turnover margin in conference play.
Offensively, Mast's squad backed itself up on the opposite end of the court, scoring the third-most points per game (79.1) in the RMAC with the league's fourth-best scoring margin (+5.4). In just his first season, Mast led Fort Lewis to a pair of signature wins on the road over No. 23/25 MSU Denver, 81-74, and at home over south-central region powerhouse No. 8/4 West Texas A&M, 76-69. The season came to a close in the semifinals of the conference tournament, but not before the Skyhawks went on the road and dominated Western Slope rival Colorado Mesa 89-65 in the opening round up in Grand Junction, Colo.
At the end of the season, three Skyhawks were tabbed with All-RMAC honors. Fifth-year guard Biko Johnson, who ranked second in the RMAC in scoring (16.3 pts/game), led the trio with First-Team honors, while Chuol Deng and Tru Allen picked up Second-Team and Honorable Mention honors, respectively. Additionally, Fort Lewis continued to pack out Whalen Gymnasium, ranking 12th in Division II in attendance.
Mast came to Fort Lewis College after leading the University of Antelope Valley (NAIA) as its head coach for five seasons. During his time at the helm, Mast guided the Pioneers to an overall record of 99-26, three Cal Pac regular-season championships, a pair of conference tournament titles, and three NAIA Tournament berths. Mast was named Cal Pac Conference Coach of the Year three times in his tenure. In his final season with the Pioneers, Mast's team swept the Cal Pac regular season and conference tournament titles, assuring a berth in the NAIA postseason. However, the postseason would take place following the closing of Antelope Valley University on March 4. Mast and company wouldn't be denied, crowdfunding nearly $40,000, including a large donation from Chegg, an education technology company located in California, to ensure the Pioneers got their chance on the national stage.
Prior to taking the reins as head coach, Mast spent two seasons on staff at Antelope Valley as the program’s Associate Head Coach. The squad earned back-to-back regular-season and tournament titles in those seasons. Mast’s coaching career began at California Institute of Technology (NCAA DIII), where he was the Assistant Coach from 2015-17. During his first season at Caltech, the team combined for the most wins in 61 years.
Before he entered the collegiate coaching ranks, Mast launched Oregon Elite Basketball (OEB). OEB quickly became the largest AAU program in Oregon from 2010-15. He was simultaneously an Assistant Coach at Liberty High School, where his team achieved multiple 20+ win seasons and reached the state championship game.
Mast’s love for basketball took him to Gonzaga University, where he competed for two seasons before an injury cut his career short. He continued his education at Warner Pacific University in Portland, Ore., where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration in 2010.
