SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Highlighted by four NCAA Tournament teams and a pair of weekend series at Power 5 schools, Bryant University baseball head coach Ryan Klosterman announced the 2020 schedule on Wednesday afternoon.
The 56-game schedule begins on Friday, Feb. 14 with four games in Wilmington, North Carolina, and features trips to Georgia St., Virginia Tech and Maryland. Bryant is scheduled to play 20 home games at Conaty Park.
“I am very excited to announce our schedule for the upcoming season,” Klosterman said. “Our opening weekend will put us into a tournament-like atmosphere right away and road series at Power 5 schools Virginia Tech and Maryland will provide an outstanding competitive atmosphere for our program. Our guys have been working hard this fall and they are excited to get to work this spring.”
Early Season Trips
Bryant opens the season with four games in Wilmington, North Carolina. The Bulldogs will face Dayton on Feb. 14 before taking on both Dayton and UNC Wilmington the following day. Bryant closes the weekend with another game against the Seahawks on Sunday.
The Black and Gold heads to Atlanta the second weekend of the year for a three-game series with Georgia St. It will be the first meeting between the two programs. Bryant will then make the trek to Blacksburg, Virginia, for a three-game series with Virginia Tech (Feb. 28-Mar. 1). The Bulldogs posted their first-ever series victory over an ACC team when they took two-of-three from the Hokies last spring.
Bryant begins its eight-game spring break trip with a three-game series at Maryland (Mar. 6-8). It will be the Bulldogs’ fifth trip to College Park in the last seven seasons. Bryant will then head to Western Carolina for a pair of midweek games on Mar. 10 and Mar. 11 before closing the trip with a three-game series in Durham against N.C. Central.
New England Midweek Games
Bryant opens its home schedule on Mar. 18 when Hartford comes to Conaty Park. It will be the first of 20 home games and the first of 11 midweek games against New England foes for the Black and Gold.
The Bulldogs will play a home-and-home midweek set with Brown on Mar. 24-25 before traveling to Rhode Island on Apr. 1. Bryant will then travel to Storrs, Connecticut, to face UConn on Apr. 7.
Bryant will also host URI on Apr. 14, Quinnipiac on Apr. 28 and UMass Lowell on May 12. The Bulldogs will visit Quinnipiac on Apr. 15, Boston College on Apr. 22 and Northeastern on Apr. 29.
Northeast Conference Play
Bryant will play 27 Northeast Conference games this spring. The schedule will include the newest NEC member Merrimack and multiple series against Fairleigh Dickinson and Sacred Heart. Bryant has won eight-straight NEC Regular-Season titles.
The Bulldogs open NEC play at home, hosting Fairleigh Dickinson in a three-game series on Mar. 20-22. Bryant will also host NEC series against Merrimack (Apr. 3-5), defending tournament champ Central Connecticut (Apr. 24-26), Wagner (May 1-3) and Sacred Heart (May 14-16).
Bryant will play road series at Sacred Heart (Mar. 27-29), Long Island University (Apr. 9-11), FDU (Apr. 17-19) and Mount St. Mary’s (May 8-10).
2020 Schedule Notes and Notables
Bryant’s schedule features four teams that made the 2019 NCAA Tournament and four teams that finished 2019 in the top 100 of the RPI.
The Bulldogs will play four first-time opponents in 2020 (UNCW, Georgia St., Western Carolina, N.C. Central).
Bryant’s series at N.C. Central will be played at Durham Athletic Park (DAP), the former home of the Durham Bulls and the stadium featured in the 1988 film Bull Durham.
Bryant has won 76 percent (217-66) of its NEC games since playing a full league schedule in 2010.
The Bulldogs have also won 70 percent (259-112) of their home games since the 2000 season.
Bryant led the country in road wins (23) in 2019. The Bulldogs have led the country in road wins three times (2014, 2016, 2019) in the last six years.
