Dec. 12, 2011
2012 Penn State Softball Schedule | Penn State Softball on: Facebook | Twitter
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Nittany Lion softball will once again face an exciting and challenging schedule during the 2012 season head coach Robin Petrini announced on Monday. Penn State has 54 games on the docket against 32 opponents, eight of which made the NCAA Tournament last season. The Nittany Lions will host 15 games at Beard Field and Nittany Lion Softball Park as well.
In all, Penn State will take on four opponents ranked in the final 2011 NFCA Top 25 poll for a total of eight games. Among those ranked teams includes four games against Michigan (17th), two games against LSU (22nd) and matchups with Oklahoma (7th) and Louisiana-Lafayette (23rd). The Nittany Lions defeated Oklahoma, then ranked ninth, before the Sooners made a run to the Women's College World Series. In Michigan and Louisiana-Lafayette, the Nittany Lions will play two teams that won over 50 games, while there are five more opponents that won 40-plus games in 2011.
The season kicks off in Baton Rouge, La. for the Tiger Classic on Friday, Feb. 10 against LSU in beautiful Tiger Park, a 2,500-seat softball stadium located on campus built in 2009. The Tiger Classic will be one of the best tournaments on opening weekend as Michigan and Penn State represent the Big Ten down in the Bayou, along with Louisiana Tech. Michigan and LSU were ranked in the Top 25 in last year's final poll, while Penn State garnered votes as well to cap the 2011 season.
The Nittany Lions play the Lady Techsters Feb. 11 for the first time since a meeting in Happy Valley in the 1983 NCAA Tournament before taking on the Tigers again. PSU then plays the Wolverines in a rare non-conference game against a Big Ten opponent the following day.
After a weekend off, Penn State drives down to the Carolina Classic for its second visit in as many years on Feb. 25-26. The Lions face Notre Dame and James Madison on the first day before taking on JMU and host North Carolina on Sunday the 26th. Penn State his 2-0 all-time against Notre Dame, while PSU and JMU met once in 2003, a Nittany Lion victory. Penn State holds a 9-7 edge against the Tar Heels.
The Nittany Lions head into an 11-game Spring Break trip in central Florida to take part in the Citrus Classic and USF Under Armour Showcase. The Citrus Classic--hosted by the ESPN World Wide of Sports Complex in Kissimmee, Fla. Mar. 2-4--sees the Lions face Virginia and Long Island on Mar. 2, N.C. State and Lipscomb on Mar. 3 and Auburn on Mar. 4. Penn State then travels down Interstate 4 to Clearwater, Fla. and take on Miami of Ohio, coached by former PSU assistant Kelly Kovach Schoenly, for a mid-week matchup on Mar. 7. Last season, Penn State beat the Red Hawks, 1-0, in the Buzz Classic in Woodstock, Ga.
PSU wraps up its time in Florida with five more matchups starting with two games on Mar. 9 at USF's new on-campus stadium against Virginia Tech and South Florida. The following day, Penn State plays Central Connecticut State and USC-Upstate before closing the tournament on Mar. 11 against Rutgers. The matchups with Virginia Tech, CCSU and USC-Upstate are the first for Penn State in softball. The last visit to the USF Under Armour Showcase saw Penn State go 4-0 and win the tournament in 2010.
Penn State's tournament schedule concludes Mar. 16-18 in Fullerton, Calif. at the Judi Garman Classic, the second straight year PSU has visited the prestigious competition. The Nittany Lions face a pair of perennially ranked teams in Louisiana-Lafayette and Oklahoma on Friday the 16th. Last season, Penn State defeated the Sooners, 5-2, at the same tournament. The following day, PSU has another Garman Classic rematch when they face Fresno State before taking on BYU. The Lions defeated Fresno State, 1-0, in last year's event. Penn State concludes its time in California with a game against the host, Cal State Fullerton, on Mar. 18.
The Nittany Lions open the Big Ten season with a familiar foe, Michigan, in Ann Arbor Mar. 24-25. Under the new Big Ten format, teams will face eight other opponents three times and miss three opponents. This year's Big Ten teams that PSU won't play are Northwestern, Nebraska and Iowa. Penn State and Michigan play a doubleheader Saturday, Mar. 24 before a single game on the 25th.
The next weekend, PSU wraps up its 30-game stretch away from Happy Valley with a three-game set at Purdue Mar. 31-Apr. 1. Penn State opens its home slate with a doubleheader against local rival Pittsburgh on Tuesday, Apr. 3 at 3:00 p.m. The Pitt series begins the first of 10 straight games at home.
The Lions welcome Michigan State to Beard Field for the first time with a three-game series Apr. 7-8 before taking on Temple (3:00 p.m.) in a doubleheader on Apr. 11. The 10-game home stand concludes with three games against Indiana Apr. 14-15. All weekend home series will begin at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday with a doubleheader and conclude Sunday at 1:00 p.m. with a single game except the final series of the year.
Penn State hits the road for a three-game set at Wisconsin (Apr. 21-22) and then travels to Kent State for a mid-week doubleheader on Wednesday, Apr. 25. The Nittany Lions host Minnesota for a three-game weekend series April 28-29 before traveling to Illinois (May 5-6) for the second straight year. The regular season concludes Friday-Saturday, May 11-12 as PSU hosts Ohio State for senior weekend. The Lions and Buckeyes square off at 6:00 p.m. on Friday before concluding the series on Saturday at 2:00 p.m.
The 2012 NCAA Tournament is scheduled to kick off May 18 with NCAA Regional play at 16 campus sites. Last season, Penn State hosted its first regional in 28 years as the Lion made their eight appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 2000. NCAA Super Regionals are slated for May 25-26 and the Women's College World Series is scheduled for May 31-June 6 in Oklahoma City, Okla.
The Nittany Lions return seven starters and 15 letterwinners from last season, while adding five freshman newcomers under the direction of 16th-year head coach Robin Petrini.
--NITTANY LIONS--