• ROSTER
• |
• COACHES
• |
• SCHEDULE
• |
• STATS
• |
• NEWS
• |
• ARCHIVES
• |
• PHOTOS

Follow @UofLSports on Twitter

Sept. 16, 2009

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The pairings for the 2010 Big Ten/BIG EAST Baseball Challenge were released on Wednesday afternoon and the reigning BIG EAST Conference champion Louisville Cardinals are matched up with Michigan, Michigan State and Minnesota at the event, which is hosted by the St. Petersburg/Clearwater Sports Commission on Feb. 26-28.

Louisville, making its first ever appearance in the second year of the event, will play Michigan on Friday, Feb. 26 at 7:30 p.m. ET at Dunedin Stadium, spring training home for the Toronto Blue Jays. The Cardinals and Wolverines will play the only night game on the opening day of the event, which will feature 10 games each day matching up teams from the Big Ten and BIG EAST.

Following the opener, the Cardinals will face Michigan State on Saturday, Feb. 27 at 4:30 p.m. ET at Jack Russell Stadium, the longtime spring headquarters for the Philadelphia Phillies, while Louisville's finale will be against Minnesota, a 2009 NCAA Regional squad, on Sunday, Feb. 28 at 1 p.m. ET at the Naimoli Complex, former spring training host for the Tampa Bay Rays.

Louisville, the reigning BIG EAST regular-season and tournament champions, enters 2010 after finishing the 2009 campaign with a third straight NCAA Regional appearance, a second NCAA Super Regional appearance in three years and a 47-18 record overall. Head coach Dan McDonnell, entering his fourth season leading the Cardinals, is 135-63 overall with three straight NCAA appearances, including advancing to the 2007 College World Series, and back-to-back BIG EAST Tournament titles in 2008 and 2009.

The Michigan baseball program had a streak of four straight NCAA Regional appearances halted in 2009 while finishing 30-25 overall. However, the Wolverines have carried the banner for Big Ten baseball for many years with 21 total NCAA Regional appearances and six College World Series appearances. This will be just the second meeting ever between U of L and UM on the baseball diamond, with the Cardinals winning the only previous matchup 11-1 in Louisville in 1994.

Michigan State, which has four NCAA appearances and one College World Series appearance all-time, finished 2009 at 23-31 overall and in fifth place in the Big Ten Conference standings. The Cardinals and Spartans have played one time previously with MSU earning a 3-1 neutral site win in 1993.

Minnesota leads the Big Ten with 29 all-time NCAA appearances, with its latest coming in 2009 as the Golden Gophers finished 40-19 overall after being eliminated in the championship round of the NCAA Regional in Baton Rouge, La., by eventual national champion LSU. The Gophers finished second in the Big Ten standings, just one half game behind Ohio State. The Big Ten/BIG EAST Challenge matchup between Louisville and Minnesota will be the first ever meeting on the baseball diamond between the two schools.

Last year's Challenge, which featured eight programs from the BIG EAST and all 10 Big Ten baseball-playing institutions, was won by the Big Ten, 15-9. Georgetown, which competed in 2009, will not be back in 2010, allowing newcomers Rutgers, Louisville and Villanova to participate. Rounding out the BIG EAST contingent is Cincinnati, Connecticut, Notre Dame, St. John's, Seton Hall, South Florida (USF) and West Virginia. Big Ten participants include Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State and Purdue.

More information on the Big Ten/BIG EAST Challenge can be found online at www.BigTenBIGEASTChallenge.com, while the remaining dates and opponents on the Cardinals' 2010 baseball schedule will be released later in the fall.

2010 Big Ten/BIG EAST Baseball Challenge Schedule
FRIDAY, February 26, 2010
TIME	LOCATION			MATCHUP
10 am	Al Lang Stadium		Rutgers University vs. University of Iowa
10 am	Jack Russell Stadium	University of Connecticut vs. Northwestern University
10 am	Naimoli Complex		Seton Hall University vs. Michigan State University
1:00 pm	Al Lang Stadium		University of Cincinnati vs. Penn State University
1:00 pm	Jack Russell Stadium	West Virginia University vs. Indiana University
1:00 pm	Naimoli Complex		Villanova University vs. Purdue University
4:00 pm	Dunedin Stadium		St. John's University vs. University of Minnesota
4:30 pm	Al Lang Stadium		University of South Florida vs. Ohio State University
4:30 pm	Jack Russell Stadium	University of Notre Dame vs. University of Illinois
7:30 pm	Dunedin Stadium		University of Louisville vs. University of Michigan
SATURDAY, February 27, 2010
TIME	LOCATION			MATCHUP
10 am	Al Lang Stadium		Villanova University vs. Indiana University
10 am	Jack Russell Stadium	Seton Hall University vs. Penn State University
10 am	Naimoli Complex		Northwestern University vs. Rutgers University
1:00 pm	Al Lang Stadium		University of Connecticut vs. University of Minnesota
1:00 pm	Jack Russell Stadium	Purdue University vs. University of Cincinnati
1:00 pm	Naimoli Complex		University of Iowa vs. West Virginia University
4:00 pm	Bright House Field		Ohio State University vs. University of Notre Dame
4:30 pm	Al Lang Stadium		St. John's University vs. University of Michigan
4:30 pm	Jack Russell Stadium	Michigan State University vs. University of Louisville
7:30 pm	Bright House Field		University of South Florida vs. University of Illinois
SUNDAY, February 28, 2010
TIME	LOCATION			MATCHUP
10 am	Al Lang Stadium		Northwestern University vs. Seton Hall University
10 am	Jack Russell Stadium	Purdue University vs. Rutgers University
10 am	Naimoli Complex		Penn State University vs. University of Notre Dame
10 am	Naimoli Complex 		Indiana University vs. University of Connecticut
10 am	Naimoli Complex		University of Illinois vs. St. John's University
1:00 pm	Al Lang Stadium		Michigan State University vs. West Virginia University
1:00 pm	Jack Russell Stadium	University of Iowa vs. Villanova University
1:00 pm	Naimoli Complex 		University of Michigan vs. University of South Florida
1:00 pm	Naimoli Complex 		University of Minnesota vs. University of Louisville
1:00 pm	Naimoli Complex		Ohio State University vs. University of Cincinnati