TROY, Alabama – The 2018 Troy baseball schedule, which includes 15 games against six teams that were ranked in the top 25 at any point last season, was released by Troy head coach Mark Smartt Tuesday.
After a quick four-game opening series against UT Martin (Feb. 16-18) at Riddle-Pace Field, the Trojans hit the road to face Auburn (Feb. 21) in a mid-week contest and head to Florida State (Feb. 23-25) for a three-game set the following weekend. Florida State defeated Auburn in the Tallahassee Regional finals on its way to the College World Series last season – the Seminoles were knocked out by eventual national runner-up LSU.
The Trojans will then return home for 11 of their next 13 games against UAB (Feb. 28, Mar. 13), Tennessee Tech (Mar. 2-4), Samford (Mar. 6, 20) and Gardner-Webb (Mar. 9-11) before opening Sun Belt play with Little Rock (Mar. 16-18) at home. After that stretch, Troy will travel to UL Lafayette (Mar. 23-25) for the first conference road series of the season. The Trojans will host Alabama State (Mar. 27) in mid-week action and Georgia State (Mar. 29-31) to close the month of March.
Troy will kick off April with a trip to rival Jacksonville State (Apr. 4) at newly renovated Rudy Abbott Field. The Trojans then make their second-ever trip to Boone, N.C., to play battle with Appalachian State (Apr. 6-8). The 2016 CWS Champions, Coastal Carolina, travel to Troy for the first time for a three-game league series April 13-15. Troy then welcomes Alabama A&M (Apr. 17) before a quick five-game road trip at Alabama State (Apr. 18), Arkansas State (Apr. 20-22) and Alabama (Apr. 24). The Trojans defeated the Crimson Tide in walk-off fashion in front of a record crowd at Riddle-Pace Field last season.
The Trojans will then host a three-game series against UT Arlington (Apr. 27-30) and a return visit from Jacksonville State (May 1) for the 143rd all-time meeting between the rivals. Troy hits the road one final time in 2018 with two league series at Georgia Southern (May 4-6) and ULM (May 11-13).
Sandwiched between those road trips is a matchup between Troy and another Super Regional team, Mississippi State (May 9), at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium. To close the regular season, the Trojans will host a four-game home stand against Auburn (May 15) and in-state rival South Alabama (May 17-19).
The 2018 Sun Belt Conference Tournament will be held May 22-27 at “Tigue” Moore Field in Lafayette, La.
