Fresno State Athletics
2010 Softball Schedule Announced
9/17/2009 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Sept. 17, 2009
FRESNO, Calif. - The Fresno State softball team and head coach Margie Wright has a tradition of playing one of the toughest schedules in the country each year. With the 2010 schedule now finalized, the 'Dogs once again have held true to the belief that playing the best, makes you the best.
To view the complete schedule click here: http://www.gobulldogs.com/sports/w-softbl/sched/fres-w-softbl-sched.html.
Fresno State finished with a 38-20 record in 2009 and made their 28th-straight NCAA Tournament appearance, an NCAA record. The 'Dogs also won their 21st conference championship and third tournament title in 2009. Last year's schedule was arguably the toughest amongst all Division I schools.
This year, the Bulldogs will take on 13 teams that made last year's NCAA Tournament (Mississippi State, Nevada, Stanford, Louisiana-Lafayette, Texas, Ohio State, Cal State Fullerton, San Diego State, DePaul, Illinois, UCLA, Washington and Arizona); five teams that made the Super Regionals (Stanford, Arizona, Washington, Ohio State and UCLA); two Women's College World Series participants (Washington and Arizona) and the defending national champion Washington Huskies.
Four opponents on this year's schedule will face the Bulldogs for the first time: Buffalo, East Carolina, East Tennessee State and Georgetown.
For the first time in two years, the 'Dogs begin the season at home with a doubleheader vs. Santa Clara on Feb. 12. Following that, Fresno State hosts the Fresno State Kick-Off, Feb. 13-14, with Pacific and Sacramento State.
"We decided that we really wanted to start our season at home," said head coach Margie Wright. "The best way we could do it, since it was our year to have Pacific come here, was to have UOP come, but we wanted more games so we invited Sacramento State as well, so we are playing a tri-header which will be really good for us."
Its then off to a very familiar place for the Bulldogs, but not in the regular season, as Fresno State heads north to Stanford for the Nike Invitational Feb. 20-21. The 'Dogs have a long history of playing the Cardinal during the post season but will get an opportunity to face them early in the season this year. There, the 'Dogs will also face Illinois, UC Riverside and Sacramento State.
"We typically only go to Stanford when we go to Regionals, so this way it gives us a chance to face some in-region and out of region teams that we don't typical get to face during the year," Wright said. "Getting a chance to play Illinois and Stanford who are not in our region but are usually in the top 25 will be really good for us. Playing UC Riverside and Sacramento State again will be good games for us leading up to the next tournament that we are going too."
The 'Dogs then head to a very familiar tournament in Cathedral City hosted by Oregon State. The Cathedral City Classic (Feb. 25-28) is usually host to approximately 34 teams and many top 25 teams. It's at this tournament that the 'Dogs will face Texas, Utah, Ohio State, Arizona and Washington.
Two years ago at this tournament, the 'Dogs defeated Texas 9-5 and lost a heartbreaking 1-0 contest to Ohio State.
"When we go to Cathedral City, opening up with Texas will be a huge challenge facing the Big 12 and then we play Utah immediately following that which his one of the top Mountain West teams," Wright added. "We also get to face the Big 10 and two really good Pac-10 teams. Our last three games there are against teams that were all in the Super Regionals and two teams that went the WCWS. It will be a really exciting tournament a tough test for our team."
The Bulldogs get a chance to face Washington again, after an 11-inning battle between the two teams last year at the Judi Garman Classic which went to the Huskies, 3-0, in the tiebreaker situation.
"Getting a chance to play Washington will be very exciting for us," Wright added. "Anytime you get to play the defending national champion it's an exciting game and an exciting experience. We know that practically their entire team is back and they will probably be even a little bit better than last year. We faced them early on in our season and played them to an 11-inning tiebreaker and lost but I think it gave our kids a sense at the end of the season that that's how close we could be from taking the next step."
Fresno State then returns to the San Diego Classic I, hosted by both San Diego State and the University of San Diego (March 5-7). Its there that the Bulldogs will take on Wisconsin, UTEP, SDSU, Buffalo and UCLA, which defeated the Bulldogs in the NCAA Regionals last year.
"We played UCLA pretty well last year in Regionals but we just weren't at our best when we played them and that will be a really good test for us," Wright added.
It's back to Bulldog Diamond on March 10 for a doubleheader vs. East Carolina. The 'Dogs then host the second annual Bayer CropScience Classic (March 11-14) with Colorado State, Mississippi State, East Tennessee State, Georgetown and Cal State Northridge.
"We will be on the road three-straight weekends so it will be very exciting to come home and play a doubleheader with ECU, which is a team we have never played before," Wright said. "Colorado State and CSUN are nemeses of ours because we have shared conferences with them in the past and they have always been tough opponents. Mississippi State will be a new team for us and being in the SEC they are a very strong program we are looking forward to playing them and hopefully we can get a lot of fans for that game."
On March 16 the 'Dogs host Princeton for a single game before heading back down south to the Judi Garman Classic hosted by Cal State Fullerton.
Two years ago, the Bulldogs won the tournament with a perfect 5-0 record and after struggling there last year they look to prove themselves in 2010 against some teams that gave them trouble in 2009. For the second-straight year in Fullerton, the 'Dogs will face DePaul and Louisiana-Lafayette and also play games against Cal State Fullerton, Virginia and New Mexico.
"We didn't fair very well at the Judi Garman Classic last year, we were 1-4 and it was disappointing," Wright said. "We played five very good teams that were all ranked in the top 25 and we are doing the same thing again this year."
Fresno State's only other non-conference games will be a doubleheader at UC Santa Barbara on March 30.
The Western Athletic Conference schedule begins for the 'Dogs on March 26 at Nevada. The 'Dogs defeated Nevada in the WAC Tournament championship game in Fresno last season as the two teams split the regular season title.
"I think WAC will be exciting for us this year," Wright added. "It's always a challenge going to Nevada and we open up with them. We opened up at home with them this past year but it's always more interesting going up there. Not only because they play better at home but they have a new facility that I'm sure they are excited about. It will be a good opportunity for us and I'm looking forward to it and I think the rest of the team is too."
Fresno State also travels to San Jose State and Hawai'i this year and hosts Boise State, Utah State, New Mexico State and then Louisiana Tech in the regular season finale on May 7.
"Coming home and playing the rest of the teams that we went on the road to play last year isn't always easy either," Wright added. "These will be tough challenges in the conference. We will have to play our very best every single game and take one game at a time."
The 2010 WAC Tournament will have a different look this year as only the top six teams in the standings at the end of the regular season will make the tournament which is in Las Cruces, N.M. this year. This means that each team has to fight just to get into the tournament.
"With only six teams in the tournament this year we have to do well to even get there and once we get there it's a totally different set up then what we played in last year so it will be a real challenge to go there and be able to try to win that," Wright said.
"We Are Your Team" - For Fresno State ticket information log onto gobulldogs.com or call 559-278-DOGS.
