FROM CBD NEWS SOURCE
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The University of Michigan baseball program and second-year head coach Erik Bakich have announced its 2014 schedule on Wednesday (Sept. 25). The slate is highlighted by a matchup against the defending College World Series champions, trips to Texas, North Carolina, Florida and South Carolina in a season-opening road trip and the 24-game Big Ten Conference schedule.
“We are looking forward to playing a very competitive non-conference and Big Ten schedule,” Bakich said. “Our goal is to win our 36th Big Ten championship, and also to put our program in a position to host NCAA regionals with a good RPI and strength of schedule on a perennial basis.”
The Maize and Blue opens the 2014 schedule on Friday, Feb. 14, at Texas State in the Texas State Tournament. The tournament also features a pair of games against Washington and a matchup vs. Air Force. Michigan makes its second trip to Texas in as many weeks, travelling to Houston for a three-game series with the Cougars on Feb. 21-23.
The Wolverines open their Spring Break trip at the Notre Dame Irish Classic on Feb. 28-March 2. U-M is at North Carolina State on Friday, Feb. 28, and plays the rest of the tournament at the USA Baseball Training Complex in Cary, N.C. Michigan faces Notre Dame and Appalachian State on that Saturday and finishes the Classic with a Sunday matchup against defending College World Series champion UCLA at noon.
Michigan then heads to Florida to continue the Spring Break trip with midweek matchups at Florida Gulf Coast (Tuesday, March 4) and UCF (Wednesday, March 5) before a four-game series against Princeton March 7-9 at the New York Mets Spring Training facility in Port St. Lucie, Fla. Michigan visits Charleston, S.C., to compete in the Charleston Tournament March 14-16, facing Appalachian State, Charleston and Kent State.
A midweek matchup at Eastern Michigan on March 19 is followed by a three-game Big Ten-opening series at College World Series participant Indiana on March 21-23 in Bloomington. That series ends U-M’s 25-game road trip to begin the season.
The Wolverines open the 20-game home schedule on Wednesday, March 26 against Western Michigan at 4 p.m. The Maize and Blue have home Big Ten series against Iowa (March 28-30), Minnesota (April 4-6), Nebraska (April 25-27) and Ohio State (May 9-11) and midweek matchups vs. Western Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Central Michigan, Oakland, Bowling Green and Illinois-Chicago. The home schedule ends on May 17-18 with a non-conference series against Big 12 foe Kansas.
Michigan’s Big Ten road opponent include Indiana, Illinois (April 11-13), Purdue (April 18-20) and Northwestern (May 2-4). The 2014 Big Ten Tournament will be on May 21-25 at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Neb., home of the College World Series.
