The season is almost here, WAC softball fans! Sixty days from today -- on Thursday, February 9 -- the 2012 college softball season begins.
On the opening day of the 2012 season, four WAC teams will be in action. Fresno State, Hawai'i, San Jose State and BYU will all begin play February 9. A day later, the remaining four WAC teams -- Louisiana Tech, Nevada, New Mexico State and Utah State -- will begin their 2012 campaigns.
All eight teams will begin in tournament play. Fresno State, Hawai'i and New Mexico State will host tourneys at home, while the five other WAC softball teams will participate in tournaments at neutral sites.
We'll be previewing all WAC teams and taking a look at each team's prospects in the 2012 season over the next few weeks. But here's an early look at the opening weekend schedule, which includes at least 15 games against NCAA teams from a season ago, with the possibility of more, depending on bracket play.
Fresno State - The Bulldogs will host the Fresno State Kick-Off at Bulldog Diamond, which features a pair of 2011 NCAA Tournament teams in Long Beach State and North Dakota State. The 3-time defending Summit League champion Bison have advanced to three straight NCAA tourneys, including a trip to the Super Regionals as recently as 2009. The 49ers were runners-up in the Big West a season ago, reached the NCAA tourney and had a top 40 RPI. In addition to the Bison and 49ers, Fresno State will face Sacramento State, Toledo and UC Riverside on the opening weekend of play.
Hawai'i - The Rainbow Wahine will host the Paradise Classic in Honolulu, featuring 2011 NCAA Tournament entrant DePaul. The Blue Demons were an at-large NCAA pick out of the Big East Conference a year ago and reached the Columbia regional final before falling. Also on the opening weekend, Hawai'i will host future WAC team Seattle and UM-Kansas City.
Louisiana Tech - The Lady Techsters face a tough opening slate of games, staying in-state to participate in the LSU Lady Tiger Classic. Over three days, Louisiana Tech will play four games, all against NCAA Tournament teams from a season ago. In addition to meeting the host Tigers, Tech will face defending Big Ten champion Michigan twice, along with a single game against Penn State. If there's a right time to face the Wolverines, it's probably on the opening weekend of the season when Michigan will play its first game in five years without All-American pitcher Jordan Taylor, who graduated.
Nevada - The Wolf Pack will be at the Aggie Stampede in Davis, where they will play five games against three teams. Nevada's first two games of the tournament -- and the season -- will be against former WAC opponent Boise State. Also on the slate that weekend: the host UC Davis Aggies, along with Loyola Marymount of the Pacific Coast Softball Conference. The Pack will be the only WAC team that doesn't face a 2011 NCAA Tournament team on the season's opening weekend.
New Mexico State - The Aggies will again open the season by hosting the annual Hotel Encanto Invitational, which features five opponents, including 2011 NCAA Tournament participant Indiana. The Hoosiers, long a Big Ten Conference doormat, had a breakout season a year ago with star pitcher Morgan Melloh in the circle. With Melloh gone, it will be interesting to see if the Hoosiers were a one-year wonder or if they'll maintain their status as one of the better Big Ten teams. Also on the Aggies' schedule during the opening weekend: Santa Clara, St. Mary's, Illinois-Chicago and local rival UTEP.
San Jose State - To say the Spartans face a tough opening weekend would be an understatement. Four of the five opponents on the schedule at the Kajikawa Classic advanced to the NCAA Tournament a season ago and all four advanced at least to the Super Regionals. Up first is the most dominant opponent of all: Defending NCAA champion Arizona State. After that, it's a pair of Pac-12 powers in Oregon and Washington. Add in Texas A&M, and what appears to be the most beatable opponent of the five in Cal Poly, and you have an opening weekend where grabbing two wins would be a major accomplishment for just about any team in the country.
Utah State - The Aggies open at the University of Georgia tournament in Athens, where the marquee opponent is the host team of course. The Bulldogs are a perennial Southeastern Conference power and 2012 should be no different. Also on the slate: North Carolina State of the Atlantic Coast Conference, along with St. John's, Army and Campbell.
Brigham Young - The Cougars, like San Jose State, will open at the Kajikawa Classic in Tempe but with a much more manageable schedule. BYU will open against the only team from the Pac-10 a year ago that didn't make the NCAA Tournament -- Oregon State. After facing the Beavers, BYU will meet Texas A&M and future WAC member Texas State. After that, it's powerful Oregon, followed by UC Santa Barbara of the Big West.
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