"Senior Billy O'Conner and the Musketeers look to return to the A-10 Championship title game in 2009"
FROM CBB NEWS SOURCE
CINCINNATI – Xavier head coach Scott Googins has announced the 2009 Xavier baseball schedule, which features four tournaments: the North Carolina State Tournament (Feb. 20-21), the Bethune-Cookman University Spring Break Challenge (Mar. 6-7), the Spartan Classic (Mar. 14-15) and the Joe Nuxall Classic (Apr. 14-15). The Musketeers are looking to have another strong year and reclaim the Atlantic 10 Conference regular season championship.
“We always want to develop a non-conference schedule that will test our team and one that will challenge us to play and compete at the highest level,” commented Googins. “We feel this schedule will do that and we will be tested early. We are confident that the non-conference teams we will be facing will prepare us for the tough and competitively balanced A-10 portion of our schedule.”
The first month of the schedule will prove to be tough with the Musketeers playing 16 games on the road. Xavier will face teams like Georgia State, Michigan State, Mid-Eastern Conference Champion and NCAA tournament team Bethune-Cookman, and Wright State during this stretch. Three of Xavier’s four tournaments will be taking place during the first month of the 2009 schedule.
The Musketeers will open up the 2009 schedule with the North Carolina State Tournament in Raleigh, N.C. Xavier will face Santa Clara University on February 20 and then match-up against host North Carolina State on February 21. XU wraps up the tournament against fellow Atlantic 10 team Rhode Island on February 22.
Xavier will open up conference play and its home schedule on March 20 with a three game-series against Saint Louis. The Musketeers will host Atlantic 10 foes Rhode Island, Fordham, Saint Joseph’s and Dayton at home as well as non-conference opponents Indiana, Miami (Ohio), Marshall and cross-town rival Cincinnati.
New teams to this year’s schedule include Santa Clara, NC State, Wofford College, Charleston Southern, College of Charleston and Quinnipiac to name a few.
