Twenty-one home games at Erv Huether Field and a new Summit League format highlight the 2015 schedule for the South Dakota State University baseball team.
The Jackrabbits, who finished last season with a 28-29 overall record and an 11-11 mark in league play, are slated to open the 2015 season with three games at a tournament hosted by Austin Peay (Tenn.). SDSU will face Northern Illinois on Feb. 13, followed by games against the host on Valentine’s Day and Niagara (N.Y.) on Feb. 15.
SDSU returns to the Southeast the following weekend at a tournament in Elon, N.C., with single games against Elon and Indiana State, and two versus Ball State (Ind.).
The Jackrabbits will then move on the Deep South for three games against Stephen F. Austin (Texas) Feb. 27 through March 1, followed by a three-game series March 6-8 at Southern University (La.). SDSU also has games scheduled at Southern Mississippi and versus Mississippi Valley State to close out its Spring Break trip.
The 30-game Summit League slate begins with a three-game series March 13-15 at two-time defending regular season champion Omaha.
“We are excited about getting the chance to play teams both at home and on the road during league play,” Jackrabbit head coach Dave Schrage said. “By going to three-game series we will have a true series winner each weekend and should see a lot more movement in the standings week in and week out.”
The Jackrabbits also are scheduled to play Summit League series at Western Illinois (March 20-22) and Fort Wayne (March 27-29) to round out the first full month of the season.
After spending the first six weeks of the season on the road, the Jackrabbits are home for most of the month of April with 14 games scheduled to be played at Erv Huether Field and another in Sioux Falls. The home slate begins with an April 1 non-conference doubleheader against Dakota Wesleyan, followed by the first home weekend series of the season April 3-5 against Oral Roberts, which makes its return to The Summit League.
Other home Summit League series in April include North Dakota State (April 10-12) and Omaha (April 17-19). The Jackrabbits are scheduled to wrap up the month with an April 29 night game against Creighton at Sioux Falls Stadium, which will again serve as the host site for the Summit League Baseball Championship May 20-23.
The Jackrabbits’ conclude the regular season with home Summit League series against Western Illinois (May 1-3) and Fort Wayne (May 14-16).
2015 South Dakota State Schedule
