WICHITA, Kan. – The 2018 Wichita State baseball schedule features 17 games against 2017 NCAA Tournament teams along with 32 home games, head coach Todd Butler announced Dec. 8.
“The 2018 Shocker Baseball schedule will be one of the most challenging in the history of the program with the change to the American Athletic Conference, which was the No. 4 ranked conference in college baseball in 2017,” Butler said. “The Shockers will now travel south to states such as Texas, Louisiana, Florida, Tennessee, North Carolina, and northeast to Connecticut and Ohio. One of the advantages of the American Athletic Conference will be the high ranking RPI and strength of schedules throughout the league. Shocker fans will also have the opportunity to see four projected first round draft picks from The American here in Wichita including left-handed pitcher Shane McClanahan from USF and left-handed pitcher Tim Cate from UConn, along with Shocker third baseman Alec Bohm and outfielder Greyson Jenista.”
The Shockers begin the 2018 season on the road in Lake Charles, La., at McNeese State for a three-game series, Feb. 16-18. WSU head coach Todd Butler was the head coach at McNeese State from 2001-03.
WSU comes home for 10 of the next 11 including a three-game series with Omaha, Feb. 23-25, and a three-game series with 2017 NCAA Tournament participant Nebraska, March 2-4.
The Shockers travel to 2017 NCAA Tourney participant Oral Roberts on March 7 before the Golden Eagles return the trip on May 8.
WSU visits Columbia, Mo., for the first time since 2001 with a game at Missouri on March 13 before heading to Omaha, Neb. for a three-game series with former Valley rival Creighton, March 16-18.
Oklahoma, a 2017 NCAA Tourney team, visits Wichita on March 20, while the Shockers open up American Athletic Conference play, March 29-31, at ECU.
The Shockers host 2017 NCAA Tourney team Oklahoma State on April 3 and return the trip with an April 10 game in Stillwater.
The other three 2017 NCAA Tournament teams on the schedule are all in The American. The Shockers travel to Houston, April 20-22, and UCF, April 27-29, while hosting USF, May 11-13.
Other teams that will visit Eck Stadium in 2018 include SIUE (March 6), UT Arlington (March 9-11), Furman (March 23-25), Tulane (April 6-8), UConn (April 13-15), Central Arkansas (April 17), Kansas (April 18), Cincinnati (May 4-6), South Dakota State (May 9) and Kansas State (May 15).
In the inaugural season in The American, the Shockers will also travel to Memphis, May 17-19, to end the regular-season.
Wichita State will travel to Clearwater, Fla., for the 2018 American Athletic Conference Tournament (May 22-27). The top eight teams in The American advance to the conference tournament.
