UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State softball head coach Clarisa Crowell announced the 2022 schedule Tuesday, highlighted by 20 home games at Nittany Lion Softball Park and Beard Field.
The Nittany Lions will play their first 25 of 56 games on the road in five different tournaments across the East Coast in a return to playing non-conference opponents after a non-traditional Big Ten-only season in 2021. The home opener is slated for the weekend of March 18-20 as Penn State is set to host a home tournament featuring UMass Lowell, Cornell and Rider at Beard Field.
"It is with great enthusiasm that we announce our 2022 spring schedule," said Crowell. "Our student-athletes and staff are thrilled to return to a normal spring season which will include non-conference opponents and a regular Big Ten schedule. We are excited for the opportunity to compete against several quality opponents, and I do believe our pre-conference schedule will well prepare our team for Big Ten play. Our student-athletes have worked hard all fall, and I know they are very excited to get back on the field in February. We Are!"
SCHEDULE HIGHLIGHTS
- Penn State will open the 2022 season at the Spring Games Tournament in Leesburg, Fla. the weekend of February 11-13. Opponents are still to be determined.
- The Nittany Lions will then return to two tournaments in 2022 that they participated in during the 2020 season. The first stop will be the FIU Tournament in Miami, Fla. against Cleveland State, Buffalo, and host FIU. The second familiar tournament is the I-75 Challenge in the Atlanta, Ga. area where the Nittany Lions will play doubleheaders at Georgia Tech and Kennesaw State and a single game at Georgia State.
- Penn State kicks off spring break in Chapel Hill, N.C. against Oregon, UConn, UNC-Greensboro and host UNC before playing a single mid-week game at Duke in Durham, N.C. The Nittany Lions conclude spring break in the Delaware Invitational against Canisius and host Blue Hens.
- The Nittany Lions will finally play in front of a full home crowd for the first time in nearly three years when they host their first tournament at Beard Field, March 18-20 against UMass Lowell, Cornell and Rider.
- Penn State returns to a normal eight Big Ten series slate this season, hosting Maryland (March 25-27), Purdue (April 1-3), Indiana (April 15-17) and Wisconsin (April 29-May 1), while traveling to Ohio State (April 5, doubleheader), Michigan (April 8-10), Rutgers (April 22-24) and Illinois (May 6-8).
- The Nittany Lions will also travel for one game at in-state foe Pitt (March 16) as well as hosting three mid-week non-conference games against Saint Francis (March 22), Bucknell (March 29) and Coppin State (April 26).
- Michigan State is set to host the 2022 Big Ten Tournament, May 12-14, in East Lansing, Mich. It will mark the first conference tournament since 2019 after the cancellation of the 2020 tournament due to the COVID-19 pandemic and no tournament in 2021 due to an all-Big Ten schedule during the regular season.
View the complete schedule here.
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