FROM CBB NEWS SOURCE
The Minnesota baseball team has finalized its 2009 schedule according to an announcement by head coach John Anderson. The Golden Gophers will face four teams that played in last year’s NCAA Tournament.
Minnesota will also play 25 of its 52 games at home this year. The Golden Gophers will play 11 games at Siebert Field and 14 in the Metrodome this season.
The Golden Gophers will start the regular season in Florida at the Big Ten/Big East Challenge. Minnesota will open the 2009 campaign against Seton Hall on Friday, Feb. 20 at 12 p.m. (CT) in St. Petersburg, will face West Virginia in Clearwater on Saturday, Feb. 21 at 9 a.m. (CT) and will wrap up its games at the Big Ten/Big East Challenge against Michigan State on Sunday, Feb. 22 at 11 a.m. (CT).
Minnesota will host Hawai’i its first home game at the Metrodome on Thursday, Feb. 26 at 4 p.m. The Golden Gophers will then host the 25th annual Dairy Queen Classic on Feb. 27-Mar. 1. The Dairy Queen Classic field will include Hawai’i, UC-Santa Barbara and Washington. Minnesota will play UC-Santa Barbara (35-21) on Friday, Feb. 27 at 6:35 p.m., Washington on Saturday, Feb. 28 at 6:35 p.m. and Hawai’i on Sunday, Mar. 1 at 3:05 p.m.
Following the Dairy Queen Classic, Minnesota will host Northern Iowa at the Metrodome on Wednesday, Mar. 4 at 6:35 p.m. The Golden Gophers will hold the Metrodome Tournament from Mar. 6-8. Minnesota will welcome Illinois State, South Dakota State and Western Michigan to the Metrodome Tournament. In the tournament, it will face Illinois State on Friday, Mar. 6 at 6:35 p.m., Western Michigan on Saturday, Mar. 7 at 6:35 p.m. and South Dakota State on Sundya, Mar. 8 at 3:05 p.m.
The Golden Gophers will then head on an eight-game, nine-day roadtrip to Texas. Minnesota will open the trip with a three-game series against 2008 NCAA Regional participant TCU on Mar. 13-15. The Golden Gophers will then face Texas-Arlington in a two-game series on Mar. 18-19, and will wrap up the trip with a three-game series against 2008 NCAA Regional participant Dallas Baptist on Mar. 19-21.
Minnesota will begin Big Ten play on Apr. 3. The Big Ten changed its format to three-game series this year in conference play. The Golden Gophers will open up Big Ten play on the road with a three-game series at Indiana on Mar. 27-29. Minnesota’s first home Big Ten series will be against Ohio State on Apr. 3-5. The first two games will be at the Metrodome and final game will be Siebert Field.
After the Ohio State series, Minnesota will travel to 2008 NCAA Regional participant Missouri on Apr. 7-8 in a midweek two-game series. The Golden Gophers will host Northwestern, at the Metrodome, on Apr. 10-12, and travel to Illinois on Apr. 17-19.
Minnesota will also have home series at Siebert Field against Purdue on Apr. 24-26 and against Iowa on May 1-3. The Golden Gophers’ final two Big Ten series will be at 2008 NCAA Regional participant Michigan and on the road against Penn State on May 14-16.
The Golden Gophers will also have midweek contests against Northern Iowa (Apr. 1 at the Metrodome), Wisconsin-Milwaukee (Apr. 14 at Siebert Field), South Dakota State (Apr. 15 at Siebert Field and Apr. 29 at Brookings, S.D.) and against North Dakota State (Apr. 22 at Fargo, N.D. and May 5 at Siebert Field) this year.
Minnesota returns 17 letterwinners, including two-time First-Team All-Big Ten outfielder Matt Nohelty (Rothschild, Wis.). The Golden Gophers also bring back senior righthander Tom Buske (Apple Valley, Minn.), junior Eric Decker (Cold Spring) and junior shortstop Derek McCallum (Shoreview, Minn.). Minnesota has nine true freshmen, four redshirt freshmen and 12 sophomores this season.
