Softball releases 2011 schedule
Oct. 12, 2010
AUSTIN, Texas -- In its 15th season of varsity competition, the Texas Softball team will face 16 teams who competed in the 2010 NCAA Championship, include three Women's College World Series teams. Head coach Connie Clark has put together a schedule that features five tournaments and a challenging non-conference schedule that will help prepare the Longhorns to defend their Big 12 Conference Championship. Last season, the Horns went 43-15 and won their fourth Big 12 title. Texas went on to earn a trip to the NCAA Austin Regional, marking its sixth-straight regional appearance. The Longhorns finished the 2010 season ranked 18th in the final USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Poll. Seven of the Longhorns' 2011 opponents -constituting 11 games on the schedule- were ranked in the final NFCA poll last year. The schedule features key non-conference games with Florida, LSU, Washington, DePaul, Louisville and Fresno State. Texas will play 22 regular season games at Red & Charline McCombs Field, where it owns an all-time record of 263-66-2. Big 12 weekend series against Kansas, Iowa state and Oklahoma highlight the home slate, while UT will play single home games against Baylor and Texas A&M. The Horns open the season Feb. 10 when they host their first of two home tournaments Feb. 10-13. UT welcomes Louisville, Tulsa and Northern Illinois to the tourney. The following weekend, Texas hosts a second tournament (Feb. 17-20), welcoming Missouri State, Wisconsin, Colorado State and Oregon State to McCombs Field. Following the tournaments, UT begins its road calendar Feb. 24-27 when it travels west for the Cathedral City Classic in Cathedral City, Calif. Texas will play Fordham, Florida, Cal Poly, Long Island, Loyola Marymount and Massachusetts at the four-day event. Texas begins the month of March on the road at LSU's Purple and Gold Challenge, March 4-6. The Horns will meet the Tigers, Pittsburgh and Hofstra at the tourney that includes a semifinal and championship round. On March 9, Texas returns home for a single game with Texas State and a home game with Houston the following night. Following the two home games, the Horns travel to Fullerton, Calif. March 17-20 for the Judi Garman Classic where they will meet DePaul, Washington, Fresno State, Cal State Fullerton and New Mexico. Prior to the start of Big 12 play, UT hosts a twin-bill with Texas A&M Corpus Christi on March 23. The Horns then open league action at home with a weekend series with Kansas on March 26-27. UT follows the Big 12 opener with a single game at Texas State on March 30. Texas kicks off April with a weekend series at Oklahoma State (April 2-3) before returning home for a single game with Texas A&M on April 6. The Longhorns then travel to Nebraska on April 9 for a two-game weekend with the Huskers. UT hosts Stephen F. Austin in non-conference action on April 13 and North Texas on April 14. The Horns play host to Iowa State on April 16-17 and welcome UT Arlington to McCombs on April 19 before hosting Texas Woman's on April 20. The Longhorns return to the road on April 22 with a two-game series at Texas Tech before returning to Austin to play UTSA on April 26. Texas plays a single road game at Baylor on April 27 before going home for a two-game set with Oklahoma on April 30 and May 1. Texas' final road swing begins on May 4 when it travels to Texas A&M and continues its road trip on May 7-8 with a trip to Missouri. The Horns conclude the regular season at home when they host Baylor for senior day on May 15. UT returns six positional starters, two pitchers and a total of 10 letterwinners from last year's NCAA Regional finalist team.
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