FROM CBD NEWS SOURCE
CINCINNATI – The 2014 Xavier baseball schedule has been released by head coach Scott Googins, and features six contests against three teams that played in the 2013 College World Series (CWS) before opening play in the BIG EAST Conference.
“We feel that our challenging non-conference schedule will help to prepare us for the rigors of our Big East conference schedule,” said Googins. “Getting the chance to play six games against three different teams that were in the College World Series last season will be a great opportunity to see how we stack up against the nation’s best.”
Xavier opens the season in Greenville, S.C., with games against Toledo, Furman and Norfolk State from Feb. 14-16. The season-opening contest against Toledo starts at 4 p.m.
The Musketeers will return to the Carolinas for the first three contests against a College World Series participant just a week later. Xavier and North Carolina, which reached the national semifinals, will play Feb. 21-23.
Southwest Ohio-foe Miami (Ohio) will be Xavier’s home opener and start a five-game home stand on March 12 at Hayden Field. XU will then take on Toledo in a three-game weekend series and meet Ohio to close the home stand.
Xavier will also face CWS-participants Indiana and Louisville. XU travels to IU on March 5 and then heads to UofL for two games on March 28th and 30th.
In other non-conference action, Xavier will participate in the annual Joe Nuxhall Classic on April 8-9. The traveling tournament contested each season between Xavier, Cincinnati, Miami (Ohio) and Wright State will be held in Oxford, Ohio this year.
The opening series as members of the BIG EAST Conference will take place April 4-6 in Washington, D.C. against Georgetown. The first home matches against BIG EAST competition will be held at Hayden Field on April 11-13 against Villanova.
Home conference series will also be held against St. John’s (May 2-4) and Creighton (May 15-17), while the team will travel to Butler (April 18-20) and Seton Hall (May 10-11).
Xavier finished the 2013 campaign with a 32-26 mark, including a 16-8 record in the Atlantic 10 and fourth-place finish in the conference. The Musketeers then finished third in the A-10 Championships. The 32 wins tied for the second most all-time, equaling the win totals from the 1987 and 1997 seasons.
