Fresno State has published its 2012 softball schedule, which features a dramatic increase in the number of home games compared to the 2011 season, and 18 games against teams that reached last year's NCAA Tournament.
Coach Margie Wright's Bulldogs, who had just 12 home dates a season ago, will play a whopping 35 home games in 2012. The 12 home dates and 18 home games last season were the second fewest for a Fresno State softball team in the past quarter century.
Despite being one of the nation's top 10 attendance draws (and the faraway WAC leader in
that category), Bulldog fans didn't get many chances to see their team at Bulldog Diamond in 2011. Not once during the regular season last year did Fresno State play at home on consecutive weekends.Things promise to be much different in 2012.
Fresno State will open the season with its first 10 games at home. Only once in school history (1985, under then-head coach Donna Pickel) has a Bulldog softball team opened the season with more consecutive home games. That year, on its way to a 53-15 overall record and Nor-Pac championship, Fresno State played its first 14 games at home.
Three times in the 2012 season, the Bulldogs will play home stands of eight games or more. Most impressive is the fact it's a marquee slate that continues Fresno State's annual quest for a high RPI.
Eleven home games will feature seven different teams that all reached the 2011 NCAA Tournament. Four different opponents coming to Bulldog Diamond have advanced to NCAA Super Regional play in the past two years.
Among those visiting Fresno next season: 2011 Women's College World Series qualifier California, two-time defending Super Regional qualifier Oregon, defending Big West Conference champion Pacific, 3-time defending Summit League champ (and 2010 Super Regional qualifier) North Dakota State, and Big West runner-up Long Beach State.
The Bulldogs will host defending Mountain West champion Brigham Young in a 3-game WAC series March 30-31 at Bulldog Diamond. BYU will be in its lone season of WAC softball play next season. On April 20-21, Fresno State hosts defending WAC champion New Mexico State, which reached its first NCAA Tournament a year ago. As part of the uneven league schedule, the 'Dogs get 12 home games versus nine road contests (the reverse of last season). Utah State and Louisiana Tech will make their final visits to Fresno for WAC series with the Bulldogs, who will move to the Mountain West on July 1, 2012.
Other non-conference home opponents for Wright's squad next season: Purdue (the Big Ten team coached by former Fresno State softball All-American Kim Maher), UConn of the Big East Conference, Butler, UNLV, Cal State Fullerton, UC Santa Barbara, Cal Poly, Santa Clara, Sacramento State, UC Riverside and opening-night opponent Toledo. The Bulldogs will open the 2012 campaign against the Rockets at 7 p.m., Thursday, February 9.
On the road slate are two of the nation's most elite and difficult tournaments: The Cathedral City Classic in February and the Judi Garman Classic in March. Each field is stacked with talented teams and the 'Dogs face a powerful lineup of traditional Top 25 powers.
In Cathedral City, Fresno State will meet the two biggest heavyweights in the sport -- UCLA and Arizona -- along with Iowa, Ohio State and Iowa State. In Fullerton at the Garman Classic, the Bulldogs will meet a slew of perennial powers, including defending national champion Arizona State. Along with the Sun Devils, Fresno State will face powerful DePaul, Louisiana-Lafayette, Penn State and Virginia.
At the San Diego Classic on the opening weekend of March, Fresno State will face 2011 NCAA Tournament regional finalist and future Mountain West opponent San Diego State, among others.
Utah State releases schedule - The Utah State Aggies' 2012 slate is now available and the Aggies open the season in Athens at a tourney hosted by Southeastern Conference power Georgia. USU will face some of the nation's top teams, including UCLA, Long Beach State, North Carolina and Michigan State, among others. Opponents for the tourney at Georgia and another tournament at UNLV have yet to be announced. In conference play, the Aggies will face one of the more difficult schedules in the WAC. Utah State faces four road series versus just three at home. And on the road, USU will meet all three squads that advanced to last year's NCAA Tournament -- Fresno State, New Mexico State and BYU.
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