Softball announces 2011 schedule
November 08, 2010 | Softball
Nov. 8, 2010
MADISON, Wis. -- Led by first-year head coach Yvette Healy, the University of Wisconsin softball team's 2011 schedule is highlighted by a record-tying 20 home games, it was announced Friday. The Badgers have 11 games against teams that reached the regionals of last season's Division One Softball Championship.
Healy, who becomes just the third coach in program history, takes the team to Austin, Texas, to open the season at the Texas Invitational, Feb. 17-20.
Priot to tournament play, the season commences with a non-conference matchup against Texas State at the University of Texas.
The Badgers then open the Texas Invitational against the host-Longhorns, who hosted an NCAA regional a year ago. UW then takes on Colorado State, Missouri State and Oregon State. The tournament concludes on Sunday against an opponent that is to be determined.
After a week off, the team travels south to take part in a four-team tournament hosted by Florida State on March 5-6. UW opens and closes the two-day tournament with games against Utah, while facing the host-Seminoles in between contests against the Utes.
Wisconsin then heads out on a nine-day spring break road trip to three different cities in California from March 11-19.
The trip starts in Santa Barbara as UW competes in the Gaucho Classic for the second year in a row. The tournament, which runs from March 11-13, sees the Badgers square off against UNLV, San Diego State, UCSB and San Diego. The Badgers battle UNLV once more to close out the tournament.
Two days later, the Badgers find themselves in Los Angeles for the Crowne Plaza LAX Showcase, hosted by Loyola Marymount. On March 15, UW opens tournament play against Harvard before facing LMU. The following day, Wisconsin goes up against Northern Colorado prior to facing Loyola Marymount again.
Spring break concludes for Wisconsin with a trip to San Diego for the San Diego Classic. The Badgers, who are taking part in the tournament for a second-straight year, kick things off against Harvard on March 17. Wisconsin's opponents the next day are Cal State Northridge and San Diego State, while Louisville and San Diego wrap up the Badgers' tournament play for the year.
After opening Big Ten play with a two-game series at Penn State, March 26-27, the Badgers open the home portion of their schedule on March 30 with a game against Illinois-Chicago. The next day, Healy takes on her former team, Loyola Chicago, in a doubleheader at Goodman Diamond.
A visit to Michigan State on April 2-3 is followed by a seven-game homestand from April 5-13. One day after Notre Dame visits for a single contest, North Dakota takes on the Badgers in a doubleheader on April 7.
The Badgers then open Big Ten play at home with a two-game series against Northwestern on April 9-10. Those games precede a doubleheader against South Dakota State on April 13 which closes out the homestand.
Big Ten play resumes April 16-17 with a pair of games at Indiana before Minnesota visits Madison for a doubleheader on April 20. That weekend, Illinois then comes for a two-game, two-day affair.
Wisconsin's second-to-last road trip takes place on April 27 as the Badgers visit Iowa for a doubleheader. Perennial conference power Michigan then visits Goodman Diamond for a two-game set on April 30 and May 1.
The non-conference portion of the Badgers' schedule concludes on May 4 as Green Bay comes to Madison for a doubleheader.
A series at Purdue closes out the Badgers' road schedule on May 7-8, while the regular season itself ends with home games against Ohio State on May 13-14.
