FROM CBB NEWS SOURCE
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.– University of New Mexico head baseball coach Ray Birmingham and his staff have announced the 2010 Lobo baseball schedule. The 2010 schedule will feature some of the best teams in college baseball including; national runner-up and Big-12 champion Texas, College World Series participant Arkansas, USC, Arizona, Texas Tech, Mountain West regular season champion and Super Regional Qualifier TCU and 2009 MWC Tournament champion Utah. The Lobos are currently scheduled to play 31 games in the friendly confines of Isotopes Park.
"We want to go to the mountain top," said Birmingham. "We are going to open up at Texas. This is a bold statement for our program. UNM baseball fears no one and we think we can beat anyone we face. There aren’t any slouches on our schedule. There are tremendous teams on our schedule. We want to get to Omaha, we’re not ever going to forget that we are going to get to Omaha and we are going to make ever effort to get there."
The Lobos start the season with a three-game set in Austin, Texas as they take on Big 12 champ Texas on Feb. 19-20. The Longhorns were the No. 1 seed in Omaha last June and lost to national champion LSU, 10-4, in game three of the College World Series Finals.
New Mexico will stay in the Lone Star State for a single game with Texas Tech on Feb. 23. Tech finished seventh in the Big 12 last season and went 25-32. The Lobos were 2-2 against Tech a season ago.
The first home stand of the season will be Feb. 26-28 as the Lobos welcome Northern Colorado to Isotopes Park for a four-game set. New Mexico went a perfect 4-0 against Northern Colorado last season and out-scored the Bears, 56-17.
The Lobos will head south to take on in state rivals New Mexico State March 2-3. New Mexico split the ’09 season series with the Aggies 1-1 despite outscoring NMSU 12-6.
A trip to sunny California to play the USC Trojans is the next stop for the Lobos on March 5-7. The Trojans finished the season 28-28 last season and seventh in the Pac-10 Conference.
The Lobos return home for an eight-game home stand starting with NMSU March 9-10. New Mexico will then host a four-game set with Louisiana Tech on March 12-14. Tech finished 29-22 on the season and finished second in the Western Athletic Conference narrowly missing out on a NCAA Regional berth.
MWC play begins on March 19-21 with Utah at home. The Utes were one of three MWC representatives in the NCAA Regionals last season. Despite finishing next to last in MWC regular season play, the Utes won the MWC tournament and earned the conference’s automatic berth to the NCAA Regionals. New Mexico swept Utah on the road in three consecutive 10-inning games last season.
A two-week road trip starts in Tucson, Ariz. as the Lobos take on the Arizona Wildcats March 23-24. The Wildcats finished the season 30-25 and fifth in the Pac-10 conference.
On March 26-28, the Lobos will take on NCAA Regional qualifier San Diego State. The Aztecs finished 41-23 last season and fourth in the MWC. The Lobos edged the Aztecs 2-1 in the regular season series at Isotopes Park, but fell 2-1 in the second round of the MWC Tournament.
The Lobos then face UNLV, April 1-3, in Las Vegas, Nev. UNM lost two of three games against the Rebels last season. UNLV finished fifth in the MWC with a 26-32 record.
New Mexico will face BYU at home on April 8-10. The Lobos were 3-2 against the Cougars last season. BYU finished behind the Lobos in third place in MWC regular season play, but ousted UNM 5-1 in the MWC tournament.
The Lobos will visit College World Series competitor Arkansas April 13-14. The Razorbacks made it to the national semifinals before being defeated by eventual champion LSU. Arkansas finished the season 41-24 on the season and fourth in the Western Division of the SEC.
The Lobos return home for a five-game home stand against Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference foe Coppin State, April 16-18, and West Coast Conference competitor San Francisco on April 20-21.
New Mexico will head north to Colorado Springs, Colo. to take on the Air Force Falcons April 23-25. The Lobos swept the Falcons 3-0 last season and outscored them 35-10. Air Force finished last in the MWC regular season standings.
A 10-game home stand will start with a second meeting against Texas Tech on April 27. On April 30-May 2 the Lobos will face San Diego State for the second time in the season. On May 7-9, the Lobos face 2009 MWC regular season champion TCU. The Horned Frogs were one step away from the College World Series last season and finished the season 40-18.
New Mexico will welcome Delaware State for a three-game set, May 14-16.
The regular season will conclude at Utah May 20-22. The MWC Tournament is scheduled for May 25-29 in San Diego, Calif.
