LOWELL, Mass. – UMass Lowell Baseball Head Coach Ken Harring has announced his squad’s 55-game, 2018 schedule as the program enters its first season of full Division I eligibility.
“This year’s schedule was set up to be challenging, prepare us for our first postseason and put us in environments that replicate NCAA Regional sites,” commented Harring. “We look forward to the challenge and the last four years has helped us understand what needs to be done to be successful moving forward.”
UMass Lowell will face off against four NCAA Tournament teams in Vanderbilt, Holy Cross, Marist and UMBC.
The River Hawks will begin their season at the inaugural Shipyard Classic in Charleston, S.C. from February 16-18 with four games against Ball State and Morehead State, both teams winning 30 and 36 games in 2016, respectively. Opening day will be twice as nice, as UMass Lowell will lead off with an 11 a.m. tilt against the Cardinals, followed by a meeting with the Eagles at 3:30 p.m.
UMass Lowell will head to the Music City the next weekend for a three-game series at perennial powerhouse and SEC foe, Vanderbilt. The Commodores won 36 games in 2017, but bowed out in the Corvallis Super Regional.
The remainder of the River Hawks’ early season non-conference opponents include Furman, VMI, Gardner-Webb and James Madison. The group is led by the Paladins’ 33 wins a year ago.
For the first time since joining DI, UMass Lowell’s home opener is also scheduled to be the America East opener, as the UAlbany Great Danes come to Lowell from March 24-25.
In late April, the River Hawks have a season-high 10 consecutive games at LeLachuer Park sandwiched around road swings of seven and eight games, respectively. The homestand is highlighted by Massachusetts, UConn, Boston College and the reigning America East Champion UMBC Retrievers spanning April 10-24.
The final conference series of the season takes place in Lowell from May 18-19 against Stony Brook.
Six of the America East’s seven teams will head to the 2018 America East Baseball Championship (May 23-26). The four-day tournament will be held in Orono, Maine after spending the previous five years in Lowell.
