Fresno State, BYU will tackle tough Garman field

When the always-tough Judi Garman Classic unfolds in March, another top group of opponents will face perennial national power Fresno State and WAC newcomer Brigham Young.

The Bulldogs, who've won the prestigious Garman Classic championship twice, and BYU, a WAC affiliate softball member this season, will represent the conference in what is regarded as one of the premier tournaments in the country.

Both Fresno State and BYU will meet defending national champion Arizona State in the tournament, which takes place at Cal State Fullerton March 14-18.  The Bulldogs will meet the reigning NCAA champion Sun Devils at 11 a.m. on Friday, March 16.  The Cougars will take on ASU on Thursday, March 15, at 3:30 p.m.

Fresno State annually plays a national-caliber schedule that ranks No. 1 in terms of difficulty among all WAC teams, and this year will be no different. Over a 3-day stretch, Fresno State will face four NCAA Tournament teams from a year ago as part of another juggernaut of a schedule.

In fact, in only a 48-hour stretch from 5:30 p.m. Thursday to 5:30 p.m. Saturday of that week, coach Margie Wright's Fresno State squad will meet the following teams:

• Arizona State (Defending NCAA champion, No. 1 in the final polls, and No. 1 in the RPI a year ago)
• DePaul (NCAA Tournament qualifier, No. 24 in the final polls, and No. 29 in the RPI a year ago)
• Louisiana-Lafayette (NCAA Tournament qualifier, No. 23 in the final polls, and No. 34 in the RPI a year ago)
• Penn State (NCAA Tournament qualifier, No. 35 in the final polls, and No. 46 in the RPI a year ago)
• Virginia (No. 65 in the RPI a year ago)

Coach Gordon Eakin's BYU squad will meet the following teams over a difficult 48-hour stretch:

• Arizona State (Defending NCAA champion, No. 1 in the final polls, and No. 1 in the RPI a year ago)
• Arizona (NCAA Tournament qualifier, No. 11 in the final polls, and No. 8 in the RPI a year ago)
• Penn State (NCAA Tournament qualifier, No. 35 in the final polls, and No. 46 in the RPI a year ago)
• Purdue (No. 62 in the RPI a year ago)
• UC Davis (No. 158 in the RPI a year ago)

On both Thursday and Saturday in Fullerton, WAC fans who want a glimpse of both the Bulldogs and Cougars are in for a treat as the teams will play back to back.  Thursday, you can catch BYU at 3:30 p.m. against ASU, followed by a Fresno State doubleheader at 5:30 and 7:30 when the Bulldogs meet Virginia and DePaul.

Saturday afternoon, you can watch the Bulldogs and Cougars both play Big Ten power Penn State back to back without ever leaving your seat.  On Field 2 in Fullerton that day, Fresno State meets the Nittany Lions at 3:30 p.m., while BYU takes the field against that same Penn State team immediately afterwards at approximately 5:30 p.m.

Here is the complete schedule of games at this season's Garman Classic.