Minnesota 2010 Baseball Schedule

MINNEAPOLIS– The Minnesota baseball team released its 2010 schedule on according to an announcement by Golden Gopher head coach John Anderson.

Minnesota’s 2010 schedule features one non-conference team that competed in the

NCAA Super Regionals in 2009 and four out of conference opponents that were part of NCAA Regional play in 2009.

Complete 2010 Minnesota Schedule

The Golden Gophers will start things off when they bring back the Pro-Alumni Game for the first time since 2007. It will take place on Saturday, Feb. 6 at 6:05 p.m.

Minnesota will open up the season against Akron (19-33, 12-15 in 2009) in Fort Myers, Fla. on Feb. 19-21. The next week, the Golden Gophers will travel to St. Petersburg, Fla. where they will compete in the Big East-Big Ten Challenge. Minnesota will face St. John’s (30-22, 16-11) in Dunedin on Friday, Feb. 26, Connecticut (36-24, 14-13) in St. Petersburg on Saturday, Feb. 27 and 2009 Super Regional participant Louisville in St. Petersburg on Sunday, Feb. 28.

The Golden Gophers will return home to host the Dairy Queen Classic on Mar. 5-7. Minnesota will welcome Loyola Marymount (30-29, 13-8), Northwestern (14-35, 5-17) and 2009 NCAA Regional participant Oklahoma State (34-24, 9-16) to the 26th annual installment of the Dairy Queen Classic. Minnesota will face Loyola Marymount on Friday, Mar. 5 at 6:35 p.m., Oklahoma State on Saturday, Mar. 6 at 6:35 p.m. and Northwestern on Sunday, Mar. 7 at 3:05 p.m.

Following the Dairy Queen Classic, the Golden Gophers will host Division III National Champion St. Thomas (41-13) at the Metrodome on Wednesday, Mar. 10. Minnesota will host the Metrodome Tournament on Mar. 12-14. The Golden Gophers will welcome Creighton (31-25, 14-9), Harvard (13-28, 10-10) and South Dakota State (26-30, 17-10) to the Metrodome that weekend. Minnesota will host Harvard on Friday, Mar. 12, Creighton on Saturday, Mar. 13 and South Dakota State on Sunday, Mar. 14.

After the Metrodome Classic, Minnesota will embark on six-game road trip to Alabama and Samford. The Golden Gophers will face 2009 NCAA Regional participant Alabama (37-21, 18-11) in a two-game series on Mar. 16-17. Minnesota will then head to Samford (17-35, 9-21) for a four-game series on Mar. 18-21.

Minnesota will host North Dakota State (16-28, 10-14) at the Metrodome on Mar. 23-24. The Golden Gophers will host a three-game series against Louisiana Tech (29-22, 13-11) on Mar. 26-28. The Saturday game will be played at Target Field at 1:05 p.m., while the Friday and Sunday games will be at the Metrodome.

The Golden Gophers will open up Big Ten play on the road at Purdue on Apr. 2-4. Minnesota will return home to the Metrodome for the first Big Ten series against Michigan State on Apr. 16-18.

Minnesota’s other road series in the Big Ten will be against Northwestern (Apr. 16-18), Iowa (Apr. 30-May 2) and 2009 Big Ten Regular-Season Champion Ohio State (May 20-22). The Golden Gophers will have home conference series at the Metrodome against 2009 Big Ten Tournament Champion Indiana (Apr. 23-25), Michigan (May 7-9) and Penn State (May 14-16).

The Golden Gophers will also play midweek games during the conference season against Concordia-Moorhead (Mar. 31), Hamline (Apr. 6), South Dakota State (at home Apr. 14, on the road Apr. 20), North Dakota State (on the road Apr. 28) and at Kansas State (May 4-5).

Minnesota returns 20 players who saw action from a 2009 squad that finished 40-19, finished second in the Big Ten regular-season at 17-6, advanced to the Big Ten Tournament Championship and advanced to the final game of the NCAA Regionals in LSU.

(Release)

Illinois 2010 Baseball Schedule

Illini to Face Tough Slate in 2010

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – University of Illinois coach Dan Hartleb announced his team’s schedule for the 2010 season Tuesday, with the team slated to play in the second-annual Big Ten/BIG EAST Challenge on Feb. 26-28, and tournaments at 2009 NCAA Tournament qualifiers East Carolina and Coastal Carolina early in the season. The Illini will face six NCAA Tournament teams from a year ago in 2010 – East Carolina, Coastal Carolina, Missouri, Dartmouth, Indiana and Ohio State.

“We feel like we’ve put together a schedule that will challenge us and give us an opportunity to prove ourselves against some of the top teams in the country at the Big Ten/BIG EAST Challenge, the LeClair Invitational Tournament and the Caravelle Resort Classic,” Hartleb said. “Playing tough opponents early in the season will prepare us for the rigorous Big Ten schedule. We’ve also added a number of home-and-home series with in-state schools for the 2010 season, which has helped us improve our mid-week schedule.”

Complete 2010 Illinois Schedule (PDF)
The Illini will open the season with a two-game home series against Bradley on Feb. 20-21, then will travel to the Clearwater/St. Petersburg, Fla., area, for the Big Ten/BIG EAST Challenge, where it will face the challenging trio of Notre Dame, South Florida and St. John’s, three of the top five teams in BIG EAST conference play last year.

The next weekend, the Orange and Blue will travel to the Keith LeClair Invitational Tournament hosted by East Carolina, and will face the host Pirates, Western Carolina and West Virginia. The following weekend will be the Caravelle Resort Classic in Conway, S.C., where Illinois will play host Coastal Carolina twice as well as Lipscomb and Ball State. Over spring break, the Illini will take its annual trip to Winter Haven, Fla., where it will play in the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational. Illinois will face 2009 NCAA Tournament qualifier Dartmouth twice as well as Bucknell, Akron, North Dakota State and Southeastern (FL) University.

After Spring Trip, the Illini will travel to Illinois State on March 30 and return home on March 31 for a game against Chicago State before opening the Big Ten slate against Penn State at Illinois Field. The next week will by a trying one for Illinois, as it travels to Bradley, faces Missouri at Busch Stadium on April 7, and travels to Iowa for a weekend series.

The Illini will return home to host Eastern Illinois on April 13 before traveling to Marion, Ill., for the annual game against Southern Illinois at Rent One Park on April 14. That weekend, Michigan comes to Illinois Field for a three-game series before Illinois State visits Champaign on April 20. The Illini face EIU for the second time in eight days on April 21 when the two teams meet at Grimes Field at Peterson Park in Mattoon, the site of the teams’ matchup in 2008. That weekend, the Illini wrap up the first half of Big Ten play at Michigan State.

Illinois then returns home for its longest home stand of the season, a six-game stretch in which it faces Bradley, Northwestern, Southern Illinois and Butler. The Illini then travel to Ohio State for a weekend series before taking off the middle of the week for final exams. Illinois gets back to action by hosting Purdue for a three-game series and finishing its mid-week slate with a contest at Illinois Field against Western Michigan on May 18. Illinois finishes the regular season with a trip to Bloomington, Ind., for the final Big Ten series of the season. The Big Ten Tournament will be May 26-29.

(Release)

Northwestern 2010 Baseball Schedule

EVANSTON, Ill. – Northwestern head coach Paul Stevens today (Dec. 7) announced the Wildcats’ 2010 schedule, featuring a doubleheader against the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee at Miller Park in Milwaukee.

After playing games at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome (Minnesota Twins) and U.S. Cellular Field (Chicago White Sox) last season, the Wildcats can add a visit to another Major League ballpark to their resume. The twinbill against UWM will be played April 28 following a 12:10 p.m. game between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Complete 2010 Northwestern Schedule

NU is scheduled to play its first 23 games away from Evanston beginning with two games apiece against George Mason and Winthrop Feb. 19-21 in Rock Hill, S.C. The Wildcats compete in the second-annual Big Ten/Big East Challenge the following weekend in Florida, taking on Connecticut, Rutgers and Seton Hall in the St. Petersburg/Clearwater area.

The Wildcats make a return trip to the Metrodome March 5-7 where participates in the 26th-annual Dairy Queen Classic against host Minnesota, Loyola Marymount and Oklahoma State. NU follows up the trip north by heading to Las Vegas March 11-13 for a four-game series against UNLV.

Northwestern embarks on its spring trip March 20 as it starts things off in Winter Haven, Fla., where the ‘Cats face Bucknell, UMBC, Cornell and Dartmouth. NU then heads to Deland, Fla, where it plays four contests against Stetson March 26-28.

The Wildcats return to Illinois and set to play a solo contest at UIC March 30 before opening Big Ten play at home April 2-4 against defending Big Ten regular season champion Ohio State.

On the heels of a mid-week game against Northern Illinois that is being played in Rockford, Northwestern hits the road in conference play for the first time April 9-11 as it treks to Penn State.

Minnesota invades Rocky Miller Park the following weekend, followed by a home game against Illinois State. NU then embarks on stretch during which it plays its next nine games on the road beginning with three games at Purdue April 23-25. Following the doubleheader against Milwaukee at Miller Park, the ‘Cats play a weekend series at Illinois and then a solo game against Valparaiso at U.S. Steel Yard in Gary, Ind.

Northwestern finally returns home May 7 as it faces defending Big Ten tournament champion Indiana in a weekend set. After a home game against UIC May 11, the Wildcats hit the road for the final time during the regular season as they travel to Michigan.

The 2010 regular season concludes May 20-22 as NU hosts Michigan State.

The 2010 Big Ten Tournament is slated for May 26-30 and is being held at Huntington Park in Columbus, Ohio, for the second consecutive year.

(Release)

Chicago State 2010 Baseball Schedule

Cougars To Compete In The New Great West Conference

CHICAGO, IL – Second-year Chicago State baseball head coach Michael Caston has announced today the release of the team’s 55-game 2010 schedule. This year’s slate features 21 home contests that will be held at Brooks Field on the campus of Gwendolyn Brooks College Prep High School, located at 250 E. 111th Street on Chicago’s Far South Side.

In addition, the Cougars will enter their first season as a member of the Great West Conference after serving as an independent for the past three years. CSU also faces non-conference opposition from the Big Ten, Big 12, Big East and Missouri Valley Conferences.

“The Chicago State Baseball staff and team are very excited about our schedule for the upcoming 2010 season. We are moving into our first year in the Great West Conference and our conference schedule will allow us to be competitive within our conference in our first year,” said Caston. “Our non-conference schedule features Notre Dame, Purdue, Illinois, Kansas State and Mercer. We have put together a tough non-conference schedule that will give us experience and get us ready to challenge for the Great West Championship.”

Complete 2010 Chicago State Schedule

CSU begins a season-opening nine game road swing on March 6-8 with a four-game set at Mercer before traveling to Palm Beach, Fla., for a four-game series against former Mid-Continent Conference foe Southern Utah. Following a March 23 contest at Eastern Illinois, the Cougars welcome IPFW to Brooks Field for their home opener on March 24 before embarking on a 10-game road trip versus Purdue (March 26-28), Indiana State (March 30), Illinois (March 31), Valparaiso (April 2-3) and IPFW (April 6).

The Green and White continues its April stretch with an April 7 showdown versus Eastern Illinois at Brooks Field before traveling to New York on April 9-11 for its first-ever Great West Conference series against NYIT.

After a April 13 road game at perennial Big East Conference contender Notre Dame, CSU returns to Brooks Field for a season-best 11-game homestand with weekend conference series against NJIT (April 16-18) and Utah Valley (April 23-25) sandwiched between mid-week games versus Indiana State (April 14), Purdue (April 20) and North Park (April 21).

Following the homestand, the Cougars hit the road for a mid-week series at Kansas State on April 27-28 and a four-game Great West series at Houston Baptist from April 30-May 2. CSU closes its home slate with Great West weekend series against North Dakota (May 7-9) and Texas-Pan American (May 14-16) before battling Northern Colorado on the road on May 20-22 in its final conference series of the year.

The inaugural Great West Conference Tournament will take place on May 26-29 in Edinburg, Texas with all eight teams competing in the tournament.

CSU welcomes back 15 players and seven position starters from last season’s team that includes a pair of Academic All-Great West Conference honorees.

“We had a spectacular recruiting season this past year and we were able to attract some very good players to Chicago State University. My hat goes off to my recruiting coordinator, Assistant Coach Neal Frendling, for he has given us the opportunity to compete for a Great West Championship,” Caston added. “With a mixture of our returning players, junior college transfers and incoming freshman, look for the Chicago State Baseball team to put up some numbers offensively and defensively. We will be a completely different team in 2010. The Chicago State baseball team is headed in the right direction and I feel the foundation has been set in order to build a legitimate baseball program.”

(Release)

Creighton 2010 Baseball Schedule

Bowling Green 2010 Baseball Schedule

Bowling Green State University baseball has announced the release of its 2010 Falcon baseball schedule which features matchups with teams in the Big East, SEC and Big Ten conferences.  Those games compliment a full MAC schedule.  A total of 37 of 56 games will be played outside of the state of Ohio.

The Falcons will waste no time in finding tough competition to groom them for the upcoming season. To begin the 2010 campaign, Danny Schmitz will take his team on a road trip to the Bluegrass State for six games to begin the season.

The Falcons start the year Feb. 19-21 in Louisville, KY to open the season against the defending Big East regular season and tournament champion Louisville Cardinals. The Cardinals finished 2009 just three wins short of 50 for the

season and defending their home field with an 81 percent success rate. The Cardinal pitching staff led the Big East in team ERA (4.32) as well as in homeruns (85) and total bases (1,124). Last year UL swept BG in a three game set by a combined score of 33-12.

Complete 2010 Bowling Green Schedule

The road trip through Ohio’s southern neighbor continues with three games against the University of Kentucky. Though UK baseball finished fifth in the SEC East Division, College Baseball Newspaper has tabbed the Wildcats as having the sixth-best recruiting class in the nation, an honor the program has received two years in a row.

To open the month of March the Falcons will head further south to the former home of the Cleveland Indians spring training program, Winter Haven, Florida. The Falcons will spend nine days (March 5-14) in Winter Haven and play as many games during that span. Only two of the eight opposing teams return for this year’s Russ Matt Central Florida Invitational with Indiana and Sacred Heart, but six very skilled teams will visit to provide the Falcons some tough competition.

The Falcons will take the field against Northeastern, who finished the 2009 season with a 28-25 overall mark, to open their slate during the invitational. The next three days will feature match ups against Rhode Island, Butler and Sacred Heart. Those three teams sport a combined record of 77-89-1 from a season ago with Rhode Island garnering the most success following a 37-20-1 campaign a season ago. After enjoying an off-day at the mid-way point of the week long trip, the Falcons will head back into battle against the Ivy League’s Yale University for a double-header against the Bulldogs. North Dakota State and Indiana will round out the schedule for the duration of the tournament before the Brown and Orange return to Bowling Green.

Last year, the Falcons finished 5-3 during their stay in Winter Haven with signature wins over Bradley in extra innings and against 2010 recurring opponent Eastern Kentucky University. Of the two teams that the Falcons will play in back-to-back years in the tournament, Indiana and Sacred Heart, the Falcons were 1-1 in games against those opponents having lost to the Hoosiers 15-7 and defeating the Pioneers in a pitcher’s duel, 1-0.
Bowling Green will bring baseball back to northwest Ohio when they open their home schedule with a local rival in the Findlay Oilers. The Falcons will engage in a battle for I-75 South on March 16 at Warren E. Stellar Field for the home opener. Bowling Green has won their last ten home openers at Warren Steller Field and has not lost since a 7-6 defeat to the Wright State Raiders in the 1999 season opener.

Schmitz and Company continue to yield southern hospitality as the team travels east straight from EKU to play another Big East team in the West Virginia Mountaineers. The Mountaineers finished third in the Big East last season and only lost five games at home. The Falcons had not played a Big East team since 2008 when the Falcons fell to Villanova 10-8 in Bradenton, FL. This year, the teams will meet at a neutral site at VA Memorial Stadium in Chillicothe, Ohio.

Of the early non-conference schedule, head coach Danny Schmitz said, “This is probably the toughest schedule we’ve put together. It is a schedule that we wanted to challenge our team with. We’re doing that for a reason. We have to get ourselves ready for conference play because the Mid-American Conference is an outstanding baseball conference.”

Schmitz continued, “We have high expectations [of the players]. You still have to earn it each day you cross the white lines. This schedule is going to be very, very competitive. We hope our kids are going to be up to the task.”

With their return back to Falcon country, BGSU will open its conference slate with MAC West foe Central Michigan on March 24. It will be the only time the Chippewas and the Falcons will play in 2010 but will ready Bowling Green for a home weekend set with Northern Illinois beginning two days later.

Bowling Green will step out of conference again to play Atlantic-10 power house Dayton for a single showdown to close out the month of March. The Dragons and Falcons have had three of their last five matchups cancelled due to weather since 2007. In those two matchups, the Dragons have come out on top both times. In their lone matchup in 2007, the Falcons took the Dragons to 12 innings before losing 8-7 in an extra-inning thriller.

The next four contests between April 2 and April 6 will take the Falcons into Michigan for a three-game series against Eastern Michigan. BG will then hop on the bus to East Lansing, MI. for its first contest with a Big Ten opponent in the Michigan State Spartans. Since 2001, Bowling Green has a 15-19 record when playing in the state of Michigan with nearly as many weather cancellations as wins.

The Falcons will then embark on their final game with a Michigan school against Michigan on April 14. Last year the Falcons beat the Wolverines 8-3 after not having played them since the 2002 season when the Falcons lost 4-3.

Right across the border heading back into Ohio, MAC rival Toledo will be waiting for the visiting Falcons for a weekend series to be held in the Glass City. Bowling Green possess 102 wins against Toledo over their 88 year rivalry. That stands as the most wins BGSU has over any school they have played in program history.

After back-to-back home games against Dayton and Western Michigan on April 20-21, the Falcons hit the road again, this time going to Athens for three games against Ohio and then heading to northeast Ohio for the season finale versus Cleveland State.

Six consecutive Mid-American conference home games follow on the Falcon schedule when Bowling Green plays host to the Miami Redhawks and Akron Zips to close out April heading into the first week of May (April 30-May 9).

For the first time since April 26, 2006 the Falcons will head back to South Bend, Ind. for a single out-of-conference game with the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame. The last time Bowling Green took the trip to South Bend the Falcons outscored the Irish 11-8 on their home field. That win had broken a ten game winless streak against Notre Dame since 1990.

Bowling Green then heads to Kent, Ohio to take on the once nationally ranked Golden Flashes, who had taken two-of-three from the Falcons in 2009. Kent State finished one game behind the Falcons in the MAC standings last year after ranking second in the conference in team pitching as well as in team batting, finishing behind Bowling Green.

Another Horizon League team will come to the Falcons’ territory when the Penguins of Youngstown State come to Steller Field on May 18. Despite a 16-35 record a season ago, the Penguins return six of eight regular position players from their starting lineup and all three of their starting pitchers from last season.

“I think year in and year out there are some outstanding teams,” said Schmitz on the quality of MAC baseball this year. “Kent State as well as OU will be very strong again this year. Miami (OH) was a little young last year, but they’ve gained a lot of experience. We finished off the season with Akron and had a heck of a battle with them for three games and we expect Akron to be very much improved. You really have to bring the ‘A-game’ this year.”

This year the Mid-American Conference Tournament will be held in Chillicothe, Ohio at VA Memorial Stadium. Should the Falcons win a bid to be in field of eight MAC teams to participate in the tournament, they will return to the same field that they are scheduled to play West Virginia earlier in the season.

(Release)

Dartmouth 2010 Baseball Schedule

HANOVER, N.H. — Dartmouth College head baseball coach Bob Whalen today announced the 2010 schedule for his defending Ivy League champion squad this spring, including eight games against teams that participated in the 2009 NCAA Regionals. The Big Green will open the season with excellent challenges on March 6 in Charlottesville, Va., where they will square off against Wright State and host Virginia, both of which played in the postseason with the Cavaliers advancing to the College World Series. The three-game trip will conclude the following day with another contest versus Virginia. Dartmouth's Bob Whalen In mid-March, Dartmouth will embark on an 11-game spring trip with the first stop in Winter Haven, Fla., where they will play three Big Ten schools — Illinois twice, Northwestern and Ohio State (a 2009 NCAA participant) — before wrapping up the trip with a three-game series at another 2009 NCAA team, Bethune-Cookman. Complete 2010 Dartmouth Schedule The Ivy season will get under way with a doubleheader on April 3 at Cornell, the team the Big Green defeated in the Ivy Championship series this past May. The first of 10 home dates will take place on April 6 against Williams to begin a 12-game homestand. Columbia, Penn and Yale will all make the trek to Red Rolfe Field at Biondi Park, as will New England rivals Quinnipiac, Holy Cross and Boston College of the ACC, the final NCAA team Dartmouth will play in the regular season. After the season wraps up on May 1-2 with doubleheaders against Harvard, the victors of the Rolfe and Gehrig Division will play in the Ivy Championship on May 8-9. Dartmouth is coming off a 27-18 campaign in 2009 when it won the Ivy Championship series by defeating Cornell, two games to one. The Big Green went 16-4 in league play, winning their first 11 games against conference foes. The 2009 Ivy League Player of the Year, Nick Santomauro, signed with the New York Mets this summer as a 10th-round draft choice, but Coach Whalen has his entire pitching staff back as well as four positional starters to defend their title. Senior left-hander Robert Young (5-4, 4.63 ERA) is the Big Green captain and anchors the staff with a pair of right-handers in All-Ivy second-teamer sophomore Kyle Hendricks (6-3, 4.84 ERA) and senior Ben Murray (6-1, 5.27 ERA) in the rotation as well. The Ivy leader in saves, junior right-hander Ryan Smith (2-3, 11 saves), returns already owning the single-season and career marks for saves at Dartmouth. Offensively, sophomore shortstop Joe Sclafani (.339 BA/.417 OBA/.477 SLG) is the Big Green’s leading returning hitter and provides excellent defense up the middle. He combines with junior second baseman Jeff Onstott (.308/.427/.497) to make up the league’s foremost double-play combination. A pair of senior outfielders in Jim Wren (.325/.374/.506) and Brett Gardner (.314/.419/.500) return to help give Dartmouth a strong nucleus in its offensive attack. (Release)

Louisville Baseball 2010 Schedule

Cards to play 31 home games, 41 games vs. BCS Conference foes & 12 games against 2009 NCAA teams

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – University of Louisville baseball head coach Dan McDonnell released the Cardinals’ 2010 schedule on Thursday and it includes 31 games at Jim Patterson Stadium, 41 games against BCS Conference schools and 12 games against NCAA Regional teams from last year.

The Cards, which won swept the BIG EAST Conference and regular season titles and advanced to the NCAA Super Regional in 2009, will play seven games against Big Ten competition and six games against Southeastern Conference teams, including a three-game series at reigning SEC champion Ole Miss.

“The 2010 schedule features some great opponents in some great venues that should really challenge our squad each week,” said McDonnell, who is 135-63 in three seasons in Louisville, including three straight NCAA appearances and back-to-back BIG EAST Tournament titles in 2008 and 2009. “As in years past, we continue to put an emphasis on playing against the best competition in the nation by scheduling more than 40 games against teams from the BCS conferences, as well as numerous NCAA Regional caliber squads. And as always, we’ve made it a priority to take advantage of having one of the top home facilities in the nation by playing more than 30 games at Jim Patterson Stadium.”

Louisville will open the 2010 season at home on Feb. 19-21 with a three-game series against reigning Mid-American Conference champion Bowling Green at Jim Patterson Stadium and will follow that with a mid-week game at home against Morehead State on Feb. 23.

The Cardinals will then take to the road for the first time for their first appearance in the Big Ten/BIG EAST Challenge hosted by St. Petersburg/Clearwater Sports Commission on Feb. 26-28. Louisville will play Michigan on Feb. 26 at 7:30 p.m. ET at Dunedin Stadium, spring training home for the Toronto Blue Jays, in the only night game on the opening day of the event, which will feature 10 games each day matching up teams from the Big Ten and BIG EAST.

Following the opener, the Cardinals will face Michigan State on Saturday, Feb. 27 at 4:30 p.m. ET at Jack Russell Stadium, the longtime spring headquarters for the Philadelphia Phillies, while Louisville’s finale will be against Minnesota, a 2009 NCAA Regional squad, on Sunday, Feb. 28 at 1 p.m. ET at the Naimoli Complex, former spring training host for the Tampa Bay Rays.

The Cards will return home from Florida to host a five-game homestand at Jim Patterson Stadium. Louisville will host a mid-week game against Evansville (March 3), a three-game weekend series with NCAA Division I independent Le Moyne College (March 5-7) and a mid-week game against Indiana (March 9) in a rematch of the last year’s NCAA Regional first round game in Louisville. The Cardinals will play a return game against the Hoosiers on March 30 in Bloomington.

U of L will then return to the road for a three-game series in Oxford, Miss., against Ole Miss on March 12-14 in a match-up of reigning conference championship programs. It will also be a reunion for McDonnell, who served as an assistant coach at Ole Miss from 2001-06, and Cards’ senior first baseman Andrew Clark, who played one season for the Rebels before transferring to Louisville.

After hosting 2009 NCAA Regional team Xavier on March 15 for Elementary School Day at Patterson Stadium, the Cardinals will host their final non-conference weekend series on March 19-21 against Ball State.

Following a mid-week return game at Evansville on March 23, the Cards will the defense of their 2009 BIG EAST Conference title with a three-game series at home against Connecticut on March 26-28 at Jim Patterson Stadium. The series will be a rematch of last year’s BIG EAST Tournament title game, won by Louisville 11-3 in Clearwater, Fla.

Along with UConn, the Cardinals will host BIG EAST foes Villanova (April 1-3), Seton Hall (April 23-25), Rutgers (April 30-May 2) and St. John’s (May 14-16). Louisville will play four BIG EAST opponents on the road, including Pittsburgh (April 9-11), West Virginia (April 16-18), Georgetown (May 7-9) and Notre Dame (May 20-22).

The Cardinals will play the first of two games against rival Kentucky on April 6 in Lexington, while the Wildcats will visit Jim Patterson Stadium in Louisville on April 28. U of L will also play two games against 2009 NCAA Regional squad Western Kentucky on April 14 in Bowling Green and on April 21 in Louisville and a mid-week home game against in-state foe Eastern Kentucky on May 18.

On May 4-5, Louisville will travel to Columbus, Ohio for a two-game, mid-week series against 2009 NCAA Regional participant Ohio State, while on May 11, the Cards will be in Nashville, Tenn., for a mid-week game at Vanderbilt in a rematch of last year’s NCAA Regional title game, which was won by Louisville 5-3.

The 2010 BIG EAST Championship is set for May 26-30 at Bright House Field in Clearwater, Fla., where the Cardinals have won the last two tournament titles and have an 11-2 record overall. The 2010 NCAA Championship is set to begin on June 4 with regional play.

The 2010 Louisville squad returns seven position starters and most of its pitching staff from a team that finished the season ranked 14th in the nation after making the program’s second NCAA Super Regional appearance in McDonnell’s three years as the head coach.

Minnesota’s Decker To Miss Rest Of Football Season

Gopher Two-Sport Star Out With Foot Injury

MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota’s sputtering offense sure didn’t need this: Star wide receiver Eric Decker will miss the rest of the regular season because of a sprained left foot.

If the Gophers (4-4 overall, 2-3 Big Ten) get in a bowl game and Decker doesn’t need surgery, the school’s all-time leading receiver could play once more. Otherwise, Decker’s college career is done. He hurt his arch last Saturday.

“It’s tough right now,” quarterback Adam Weber said. “You have all these expectations for the season, and it’s a big blow.”

Decker sprained his left ankle last Nov. 1 in a loss to Northwestern, was unable to contribute in the following two games and the Gophers didn’t win again. This is a different injury, but the impact is the same.

Decker is one of 10 finalists for the Biletnikoff Award, given annually to the nation’s top receiver. He’s a baseball star, too, drafted by the Minnesota Twins in June, and he batted .319 with four home runs and 25 RBIs last spring.

He is the first Minnesota athlete to letter in football and baseball since 1999, and he’s only the third Minnesota player since 1966 to letter in football and be selected in the Major League Baseball Draft.  (He joins Hall of Famer Dave Winfield on that short list.)

Decker was unavailable for comment Tuesday.

The transition to a pro-style, play-action offense after two seasons running the spread has been rough for the Gophers. They’re next to last in the conference with 21.1 points per game and last with 292.8 yards per game after dropping 20-0 and 38-7 decisions to Ohio State and Penn State in successive weeks.

Despite being held down this month by Purdue (three catches, 50 yards), Penn State (one for 42) and Ohio State (three for 27 before the injury), Decker has still accounted for half of Minnesota’s passing yardage and five of Weber’s six touchdown throws. He’s second in the Big Ten with 758 yards receiving.

“I think he’s the best wide receiver in college football, period,” coach Tim Brewster said Tuesday. “You know, it’s tough to replace a guy like that.”

Will the Gophers be all right? Defensive tackle Eric Small, another captain, called Decker the hardest worker on the team. He’s not only their most talented player but also perhaps their most inspiring.

During a loss to Cal, then the nation’s eighth-ranked team, Decker caught eight passes for 119 yards and two touchdowns with blood all over his face and jersey from a hard hit that opened a gash that needed stitches. He even threw for a score in that game.

“He adds everything you could ever want in a player,” Small said.

(AP and Staff report)

Indiana Baseball Announces 2010 Schedule

2010 Hoosier Slate Included 12 Games vs. 2009 NCAA Teams

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The Indiana baseball team has released its 2010 schedule, head coach Tracy Smith announced today. The Hoosiers, who open the season in San Diego, will play at least 12 games against teams that participated in the 2009 NCAA Tournament.

“We’re looking forward to what should be a challenging schedule in 2010,” Smith said. “It will be a good experience for our Southern California kids to open the season in San Diego where a lot of them are from, and with the second year of the Big Ten/BIG EAST Challenge and the Vanderbilt Tournament, we should face some strong early-season competition which will prepare us for the Big Ten.”

The Hoosiers open the season with four games in San Diego, in a weekend that will be a homecoming for IU’s four natives of Southern California. Indiana will take on the University of San Diego on both Friday and Saturday, with a doubleheader scheduled for the second day. IU will also play a Sunday contest at NCAA participant San Diego State during the four-game weekend swing.

The second weekend of the season sees the second annual Big Ten/BIG EAST Challenge in Clearwater/St. Petersburg, Fla. IU will face off against West Virginia for the second straight year at the Challenge in addition to the first-ever contests against Villanova and Connecticut. The Hoosiers took two out of three games at the 2009 Challenge as the Big Ten won the battle of the two leagues, 15-9.

After playing its first game in the state on March 2 at Indiana State, IU then travels to the Music City Classic in Nashville, Tenn., hosted by Vanderbilt. The Hoosiers and Commodores, who faced off at the Louisville NCAA Regional last year, will be joined by Illinois State and NCAA participant Kent State at the weekend event.

Following a March 9 trip to face off with NCAA opponent Louisville, Indiana will embark on its Spring Trip, which will take the Hoosiers to Winter Haven, Fla., for the second straight year. Times and opponents are yet to be determined for the trip.

After a road game at Morehead State on March 23, IU has its home opener against 2009 Houston Regional participant Xavier on March 24 to begin an eight-game homestand. IU faces St. Francis and Taylor on March 26 and 27, and then Louisville visits on March 30 for the final game before conference play. Indiana opens Big Ten action on Friday, April 2, against Michigan for a three-game set.

During Big Ten action, the Hoosiers also play host to Iowa (April 16-18), Purdue (April 30-May 2) and Illinois (May 20-22). Road series include sets at Ohio State (April 9-11), Minnesota (April 23-25), Northwestern (May 7-9) and Michigan State (May 14-16), as Penn State leaves the conference schedule for the 2010 and 2011 seasons.

Other non-conference highlights include a trip to Gary, Ind., to face Valparaiso at Railcats Stadium and home games against Ball State (April 6), Indiana State (April 28) and Kentucky (May 11). Other conference road contests pit the Hoosiers against Miami University (April 20) and Evansville (May 18).

The Hoosiers will look to return to the Big Ten Tournament for the third straight season after taking the conference title in 2009, the second such championship in school history. IU has never made three straight conference tourney appearances since the tournament’s inception in 1981. The 2010 tournament is scheduled for May 26-30, with the location yet to be determined.

(Press Release)