University of Kentucky third-year head softball coach Eileen Schmidt has released the 2007 schedule which features three tournaments, 24 home contests and matchups against nine teams that advanced to the NCAA Regionals in 2006. The Cats will also face a pair of World Series participants in Tennesee and Alabama.
Schmidt returns 11 players from the 2006 team that finished 21-36. Seniors Katie Campbell, Ashley Fertic, Gina Florence, Brooke Marnitz and Jenny Sibert all return for their final season, while the Wildcats add seven newcomers to the 2007 roster.
The Wildcats will kick off the season in Waco, Texas, Feb. 9-11 at the Getterman Classic which features Stephen F. Austin, Southern Mississippi and host-team Baylor. UK will play its first home contest on Feb. 17-18 when it hosts Maine for a three-game series at the UK Softball Complex.
The Cats will head west for a tournament, Feb. 23-26, at UC-Davis. Indiana, Sacramento State and Saint Mary?s make up the five-team field.
The final regular season tournament of the year will be Mar. 3-4 when the Cats host the second annual Frostbite Classic. The two-day four-team tournament will pit the Cats against Butler, IUPUI and Evansville.
The homestand continues when Louisville comes to town on Mar. 7, followed by the Southeastern Conference opener with Auburn on Mar. 10-11. After a conference doubleheader with Mississippi State, the Cats hit the road for their first league road series, Mar. 17-18, at Georgia.
UK returns home for a non-conference game against Marshall on Mar. 21 before welcoming Ole Miss for a three-game series, Mar. 24-25. A brief road trip to Arkansas and LSU follows before the Cats open a six-game homestand against Western Kentucky, Eastern Kentucky and 2006 World Series participant Tennessee.
The Cats will host Indiana on Apr. 25 sandwiched between a pair of SEC road series at South Carolina (Apr. 21-22) and Alabama (Apr. 28-29). Kentucky will travel to take on in-state rival Louisville on May 2 before hosting Florida, May 5-6, in their final regular season series.
?This year?s schedule is really a good one for this young team,? said Schmidt. ?We have our traditional west coast trip along with Baylor?s tournament in Waco. Baylor has such a great stadium and playing there is definitely an experience. We have a lot of home dates this year, as well, so the Big Blue fans will have plenty of opportunities to come out and catch a game here in town.?
