Rachel Lawson Unveils 2020 Kentucky Softball Schedule
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Entering her 13th season as the head coach of the Kentucky Softball program, Rachel Lawson unveiled her team’s 2020 schedule Tuesday afternoon. The 2020 slate of games features 35 contests against teams from the NCAA Tournament a season ago and six matchups against teams that reached the 2019 Women’s College World Series.
Also included in the 2020 schedule is 16 home games inside beautiful John Cropp Stadium, which enters its eighth season as the home field of the Wildcats. UK will play in four different non-conference tournaments throughout the country before opening up Southeastern Conference play March 7-9 against Texas A&M in Lexington.
The 2020 SEC slate features home contests with Florida (WCWS), Tennessee (Super Regionals), Arkansas (Regionals) and Texas A&M (Regionals). On the road in conference action, UK will travel to Mississippi State (Regionals), Georgia (Regionals), Mizzou (Regionals) and Ole Miss (Super Regionals).
Opening weekend of the 2020 season is February 7-9. Kentucky will open up at the restart of the National Fastpitch Coaches’ Association Lead-Off Classic in Clearwater, Florida at the Eddie C. Moore Softball Complex. There, UK will face WCWS participant Minnesota, NC State, Texas State and Liberty. Additionally, on Feb. 8, Kentucky will play an exhibition against the United Stats Olympic National Team at 5:30 p.m. ET.
UK will head west for the second week of the season to the desert as Arizona State will host a tournament in Tempe, Arizona featuring the Sun Devils, Wildcats, Illinois State and Detroit. Kentucky will face Detroit again two weeks later in the Florida Spring Invitational hosted by Perfect Game in Orlando from Feb. 27-March 1.
Kentucky has finished the last two seasons with the No. 1 national strength of schedule, and Lawson will test the Wildcats again in 2020 with an SEC bye weekend trip to Norman, Oklahoma to face the four-time national champion Sooners. The Easter Weekend trip will see UK and OU tangle for two games, one each on April 10 and 11 at Marita Hynes Field.
The Wildcats will play some of the best teams from the Ohio Valley region in its midweeks including the annual “Battle of the Bluegrass” against Louisville on April 29 at John Cropp Stadium. UK will also host Northern Kentucky, Marshall and Morehead State in midweeks while making trips to Miami (OH), Western Kentucky, Ohio State and Eastern Kentucky.
The 2020 SEC Tournament will be hosted by the University of Alabama at Rhodes Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama from May 5-9. The SEC Network and the ESPN Family of Networks will combine to televise the event once again.
Sixteen campus sites will be awarded hosting bids to have the NCAA Regionals on their fields from May 14-17 with the winners advancing to the NCAA Super Regionals from May 21-24.
The 2020 Women’s College World Series will be held at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma from May 28 – June 3. ESPN and ESPN2 will combine to televise first pitch to last out from OKC.
For the most up-to-date information on Kentucky Softball, follow @UKSoftball on Twitter and Instagram, as well as Coach Lawson at @UKCoachLawson.
