CSUB Softball Coaches Say They Were Made Scapegoats in Kevin Mays Pimping and Narcotics Case

The Cal State Bakersfield athletic department is back in the spotlight thanks to a recent report about former men's assistant basketball coach Kevin Mays.

Mays is currently being held without bail and faces 11 criminal and misdemeanor charges, including felonies such as pimping. In addition, he was charged with possession of automatic firearms and high-capacity magazines and possession of methamphetamine and marijuana with intent to sell. Separate charges cited him for possession of more than 600 images of youth or child pornography and distribution of obscene matter involving someone under 18 years old.

Mays has pleaded not guilty on all charges.

The report also mentioned the softball program because of a 2025 investigation into former assistant coach James Davenport and head coach Letty Olivarez.

Softball On SI reported about the softball program and how the coaches were made scapegoats as a cover-up for Mays’ wrongdoing, including an alleged relationship with a former softball player, Violet Salazar, in October 2025.

The October report details how former CSUB assistant softball coach James Davenport warned administrators and university officials in February 2025 about alleged illegal activity in a workplace violence report. The filing from him came after an incident between games at Fresno State, where two people associated with Salazar approached Davenport in the bullpen and threatened to kill him. The incident was also reported to Fresno State Police.

Davenport detailed in his report that he "had reason to believe that Salazar was allegedly in a relationship with Kevin Mays, a staff member of the CSUB Men’s Basketball program, and that Salazar and Mays may be involved in allegedly illegal activities involving firearms and narcotics."

A lawsuit filed by former Athletic Director Kyle Conder confirmed the incident and stated that he reported the details to the University's Police Department in February 2025.

"Two individuals who CSUB later confirmed were associated with Salazar accessed the bullpen area of the softball field and threatened to kill (assistant coach) James Davenport," Conder's lawsuit reads.

The filing claims several violent threats were made against the CSUB coaching staff. This was captured by a parent at Fresno State when two individuals accessed the bullpen area and threatened to kill (assistant coach) James Davenport. pic.twitter.com/jVGaoOYcjZ
— Maren Angus-Coombs (@Maren_Angus) October 31, 2025

"He also notified appropriate university administrators about the situation, including officials in People and Culture/HR (Lori Blodorn), and Student Affairs/Dean of Students (Emily Poole-Callahan), so that the University could investigate the alleged misconduct," Conder's lawsuit adds. "At the time, no Title IX Coordinator was available to receive a report, and Plaintiff believed involving the police was the most effective way to protect the student-athletes from harm."

On March 4, 2025, Conder met with CSUB’s Behavioral Assessment Intervention and Response Team (BART), which included Blodorn, Poole-Callahan, Deborah (Debbie) Boschini (Associate Vice President for Faculty Affairs), Maricela (Mari) Gonzalez (Chief of Police), Greg Kinder (Police Captain), Jevan Lane (Director of Safety and Risk Management), Catherine (Cathy) Barrad (General Counsel), and Melissa Carleton (an out-of-state consultant that Blodorn had just contracted to address Title IX matters). The initial meeting was for Conder to provide information and receive direction.

On March 7, Olivarez and Davenport were placed on administrative leave, and on March 10, BART informed Conder that he was "no longer allowed to attend BART meetings involving the softball program because campus administrators would be deciding 'which office is taking which allegation.'

Blodorn investigated Davenport in June 2025 after Salazar accused him of sexual assault, claiming he grabbed her body after showering, leaving a bruise. She also claimed that the incident allegedly occurred in an empty locker room while her teammates were on the bus.

Salazar voiced her complaints in a series of TikTok videos in March 2025 and the university opened an internal investigation and interviewed nearly 24 individuals.

"During this time, multiple student-athletes and parents came forward supporting the coaches and pointing to a deeper issue: they reported concerns that Mays was engaging in illegal activities, and that Salazar (the accuser) was closely involved with Mays," the lawsuit detailed. "For example, one parent reported their daughter had been in a car with Salazar and Mays during drug deals and possible human trafficking attempts."

That parent also spoke with Softball On SI back in September 2025 in exchange for anonymity due to death threats their family had received from Salazar.

“It was 100 percent going on, and my daughter witnessed it,” the parent continued. “I was aware of it earlier than others and said something to the coaches, and I believe they said something to admin.”

Davenport confirmed that he told Boschini, Blodorn, and Poole Callahan of the incident.

Because of these reports, Conder suggested that Salazar’s accusations against the softball coaches might have been a smokescreen to distract from Mays’ wrongdoing. He also claims that he acted as a whistleblower, relaying the concerns that a CSUB coach (Mays) might be exploiting a student-athlete and committing crimes.

Conder was fired on Aug. 18, and the school announced his exit just four days after Mays' arrest.

The lawsuit states that CSUB was devastated when Mays was arrested and alleges that Salazar was a possible accomplice. However, several people warned the University months before the arrest, and despite those warnings, no action was taken against Mays.

It is important to note that Harper released a statement following a previous report from Softball On SI, stating that Mays was not suspended earlier because the allegations were not substantiated. However, the softball coaches were placed on leave for allegations that were also not substantiated by law enforcement.

Mays is scheduled to appear in court on March 13.

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