FARMVILLE, Va. – Top competition is on the docket for the Longwood baseball team in its 2020 baseball schedule. The slate features a trio of Power 5 schools, three non-conference foes who qualified for NCAA Regionals last season and, as always under sixth-year head coach Ryan Mau, a plethora of in-state matchups.
Ten of Longwood’s first 13 games are at home, but all three road games will be at teams that made it to the NCAA Regionals in 2019. First, Longwood goes to ACC power NC State to take on the Wolfpack for the first time since a three-game series in 2015 before rekindling an in-state rivalry with Liberty, last season’s Atlantic Sun tournament champion. The Lancers then heads to SEC power Tennessee for the second time in team history after playing in Knoxville in 2013.
Among in-state foes, the Lancers will travel to ACC contender Virginia while duking it out with George Mason, Norfolk State and James Madison in March and April.
“The non-conference schedule will be challenging and helpful in preparing us for Big South play,” said Mau, whose 2020 team features 20 returners from 2019. “In addition to UVA and our usual in-state opponents, we are excited to add several NCAA post season teams from last year with NC State, Liberty, and Tennessee.”
Longwood opens the season at home with a four-game series against Purdue Fort Wayne beginning February 14. After playing at Tennessee on March 3, the Lancers head to the Swig & Sine College Classic for three games in three days against Sacred Heart, Purdue Fort Wayne and Ball State to close out spring break in Charleston, South Carolina.
Big South play starts up on March 13 when Longwood hosts Radford. The Lancers travel to Virginia on March 17 to start a stretch of eight of nine on the road. A home game against Norfolk State on March 24 sandwiched in between trips to Winthrop and Presbyterian.
The Lancers will play 11 games at home in the month of April with High Point, UNC Asheville and Gardner-Webb all traveling to Farmville around midweek road tests at Norfolk State and NC Central. Longwood’s only road series of the month is at Charleston Southern, and the Lancers close April with George Mason and James Madison at home on back-to-back days on April 28 and 29.
In May, Longwood hosts Richmond to start a three-game series on May 1. The two teams finish the final two games at Richmond on May 2 and 3. Following a trip to USC Upstate, the Lancers wrap up their regular season schedule against Campbell, concluding with senior day on May 16.
The Big South Conference Tournament runs the following week from May 19-23 at Segra Stadium in Fayetteville, North Carolina.
2020 Schedule by the Numbers
54 games: 30 home games | 21 away games | 3 neutral site games
Home Big South Opponents (5): Radford (March 13-14), High Point (April 3-5), UNC Asheville (April 9-
11), Gardner-Webb (April 24-26), Campbell (May 14-16)
Away Big South Opponents (4): Winthrop (March 30-22), Presbyterian (March 27-29), Charleston Southern (April 17-19), USC Upstate (May 8-10)
Non-Conference Opponents (14): Purdue Fort Wayne (Feb. 14-16, March 7), NC State (Feb. 18), NJIT (Feb. 21-23), Liberty (Feb. 25), Binghamtom (Feb. 28-March 1), Tennessee (March 3), Sacred Heart (March 6), Ball State (March 8), NC Central (March 11, April 15), Virginia (March 17), Norfolk State (March 24, April 7), George Mason (March 31, April 28), James Madison (April 29), Richmond (May 1-3)
