ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The University of New Mexico softball team and head coach Erica Beach have announced the 2017 schedule. The Lobos will be facing two teams that finished in the top 25 last season and six teams that finished with a top 100 RPI.
“We are incredibly excited for our 2017 schedule,” said Beach. “We believe it’s competitive with great balance and I’m looking forward to seeing how our team competes.”
For the sixth year in a row, the Lobos will open their season at the Kajikawa Classic Feb. 9-12. For the second straight year, the Lobos will not match up against Beach’s alma mater Arizona State, but the Lobos will be going up against some competitive competition.
They open the tournament with Seattle, who they have faced in the past. UT Arlington, St. Mary’s, Western Michigan and UC Riverside round out the tournament for the Lobos.
The next two tournaments will be new sites for the Lobos. They head to Texas A&M Feb. 17-19 to face Stephen F. Austin, Missouri State and Texas A&M. The following tournament will be held at University Texas San Antonio, where the Lobos will take on UTSA, Texas State and Incarnate Word.
“We travel to some new venues which I am excited to see and will be facing many new opponents this year.”
Texas A&M finished the season last year ranked 20th in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll and 16th in the USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll. They finished with an RPI of 17.
March 4-5 will be another road trip for the Lobos. They will play a three game series against Northern Colorado.
New Mexico will finally return home for its home opener on March 8, facing UTEP for a doubleheader before hosting its annual Lobo Classic March 10-12. Stony Brook and Santa Clara will be the teams competing in the Lobo Classic.
For the Rio Grande Rivalry, the Lobos will face New Mexico State on March 15 in Las Cruces for the first of two matchups. The second contest will take place in Albuquerque on May 2.
“I think this schedule is one that will prepare our team for a successful conference run. Our team is ready to put the results of our hard work on the field and see where it can take us.”
The Lobos will start conference off with a “bye week” March 17-19.The rest of Mountain West play begins March 24-26 with a road series at UNLV. The Lobos will look to move up the ladder after finishing conference in seventh last year with an 8-15 record. The final series of the year will be at home on May 11-13 against Boise State.
Fresno State is the only team from the Mountain West that was ranked in the top 25 last year. They finished ranked 17th in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll and 20th in the USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll. They finished with an RPI of 21.
The Lobos will begin practice in January in preparation for their first road trip of the year on Feb. 9 at the Kajikawa Classic.