University of Connecticut Athletics
UConn Softball Unveils 2020 Slate
12/10/2019 3:49:00 PM | Softball
STORRS, Conn. – Head coach Laura Valentino and the UConn softball team announced their 52-game schedule for the 2020 season Wednesday afternoon, a slate that includes trips to six different states and Washington, D.C.: Florida, California, Oklahoma, New York, Tennessee and Virginia.
The Huskies will compete in several non-conference tournaments and play 15 games in Connecticut, with 14 being played at home on Burrill Family Field. Additionally, the 2020 schedule features matchups against four 2019 NCAA regional contenders – James Madison, Tulsa, Houston and USF.
UConn opens the season in Fort Myers, Fla, where the Huskies will compete in the FGCU Softball Tournament hosted by Florida Gulf Coast from February 7-9. The Huskies head back to Florida the following weekend (Feb. 14-16), this time making the stop in Clermont.
After recharging with a bye week, the Huskies venture out to California for the Capital Classic (Feb. 28-March 1), where the team will play five games in three days against Santa Clara, UC-Davis, St. Mary's and Sacramento State.
"What I like about our preseason schedule is that we are playing teams multiple times in a weekend, which is of course, what we do during our conference season," said Valentino. "This will test our ability to respond after beating a team once and then figuring out how to beat them again, or how to rebound and find a new strategy after dropping the first game."
Additional non-conference road trips include two tournaments - the JMU (March 6-8) and St. John's (March 14-15) Invitational, as well as midweek games at Hofstra (March 10), Georgetown (March 17), Quinnipiac (March 25), CCSU (April 1), Boston College (April 15) and UMass (April 22).
UConn opens its final season in the American Athletic Conference with a three-game series at Tulsa (March 20-22) before returning to Storrs to host Quinnipiac in the home opener. A three-game series with ECU (March 27-29) rounds out the month.
"I'm excited to watch this team compete in our last year as a member of the American Athletic Conference," Valentino added. "We are driven to leave our mark in our last year as part of the conference and we are hungry to put the best versions of ourselves forward in our last year on Burrill Family Field."
Home series against UCF (April 3-5), Wichita State (April 17-19), Houston (April 24-26) and a trip to Memphis (April 9-11) comprise the month of April. Additionally, the final home series against the Cougars marks an eventful three-day period for the Huskies that includes senior weekend, alumni weekend and the last weekend playing on Burrill Family Field.
"There was a lot of history made on Burrill Family Field and we are honored to be the last team to play on it and remember those that left their mark on UConn Softball."
UConn closes out the regular season in Tampa, Fla. against the USF Bulls on May 1-3.
The American Athletic Conference Championship will be played in Orlando, Fla. from May 6-9 at the UCF Softball Complex. The champion of the double-elimination format earns an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
