FROM CBB NEWS SOURCE
LAS CRUCES, N.M. – New Mexico State baseball head coach Rocky Ward released the Aggies’ 2010 schedule, Friday, Sept. 11. The schedule features 35 home games and a series against the University of Southern California to close out the regular season.
The Aggies open the season with a tournament hosted by the University of Washington in Tucson, Feb. 19-21. The tournament will feature the Aggies playing against Washington, Gonzaga, and Missouri. Home play starts Feb. 23-24 with the University of the Southwest coming to Presley Askew Field before Akron shows up in Las Cruces Feb. 26-28.
"We are excited about opening the season on the road at a good, early tournament in Tucson and about having two very good teams coming in from the East," Ward said. "This schedule is a week longer than the last couple of years because of another rule change that gives us 14 weeks to play instead of 13. We are excited that for the first time in a couple of years we have a little more time between games."
NM State then hosts New Mexico in the first two games of the four-game series, March 2-3. The Aggies will make the trip to Albuquerque for the other two games, March 9-10. Before leaving to Albuquerque, the Aggies take on St. Joseph’s at Presley Askew Field, March 5-7.
After making the trip north to Albuquerque, the Aggies stay home for an 11-game home stand taking on Georgia State, Rhode Island and Wofford from March 12-28. NM State then heads out to Texas to take on Texas Tech, March 30 in Midland, Texas. After that, the Aggies play Houston Baptist University in a four-game series, April 1-3 in Houston, Texas.
"Georgia State and Rhode Island have been recent regional teams. Overall our non conference schedule is a little more challenging than last year with games against Texas Tech and USC," Ward said.
The 2010 Western Athletic Conference season opens for NM State at home with a four-game series against Nevada, April 9-11, then heads out to California to take on San Jose State, April 16-19 and Sacramento State, April 23-24. The Aggies return home to face Louisiana Tech April 30-May 2, before taking on the defending WAC Champions, Fresno State May 7-9. The Aggies fell to the Bulldogs in the WAC Tournament Championship, just missing out on a NCAA Tournament birth.
NM State heads out to the islands of Hawai’i facing the Rainbows in Honolulu, May 13-16. The Aggies will head back to mainland, stopping in Los Angeles to play the University of Southern California, May 18-19 for two games.
NM State will have a few days off before going back to Arizona for the 2010 WAC Tournament, which will be played in Mesa, Ariz., at the Hohokam Stadium. Hohokam Stadium is a minor league complex where the Chicago Cubs hold their spring training.
"We fought hard as coaches to get our tournament to a neutral site and we are excited to have it so close to home. We will be able to play in the conference tournament with less travel that it takes to go to any of our regular season conference games," Ward said. "We also expect to see an increased number of Aggie fans attend the event. It is not a bad trip for fans from Las Cruces and NM State has a pretty large alumni population in the Mesa area."
2010 New Mexico State Schedule
