By Alex Boggis, UT Martin Assistant Sports Information Director
MARTIN, Tenn. – University of Tennessee at Martin head softball coach Brian Dunn has announced its 2023 schedule which features four tournament appearances, a loaded Ohio Valley Conference slate and 15 home games.
The Skyhawks open the year with 50 schedule contests including matchups against three teams which earned berths to the NCAA Tournament last season. UT Martin will travel to eight states including Alabama, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee while competing against 14 different conferences before opening the team’s 24-game OVC schedule.
UT Martin will open the season at the Black and Gold Tournament in Montgomery, Ala. in a five-game tournament running from Feb. 10-12. The Skyhawks will join a field with a matchup against Kennesaw State to open the season on Friday, Feb. 10. The following day with see the squad play two games on Saturday against Western Carolina and Alabama State. The tournament will wrap up with rematches against Western Carolina and Kennesaw State on Sunday morning.
The following weekend will see the Skyhawks travel to the UE Invitational in Evansville, Ind. on Feb. 17-18. UT Martin will square off against Green Bay and Kansas City on Friday before repeating both matchups on Saturday.
The Skyhawks will close out the month of February at The Spring Games in Madeira Beach, Fla. for a five-game tournament appearance. UT Martin will face off against 2022 NCAA Tournament performer Notre Dame on Friday before closing out the day against Dartmouth that afternoon. Saturday will see another NCAA Tournament team across the diamond as the Skyhawks face Oakland in the morning before a quick turnaround against Valparaiso. The tournament will be capped off against Siena College on Sunday.
The team’s final tournament appearance will come at the Saluki Invitational in Carbondale, Ill. running from March 3-5. UT Martin will battle the tournament hosts Southern Illinois on Friday afternoon before squaring off against Butler and SIU on Saturday. The final contest will see the Skyhawks square off against Loyola on Sunday.
UT Martin will have its home opener on Tuesday, March 7 when playing host to Alabama A&M. The Skyhawks will round out their non-conference schedule with matchups against Marshall and Bellarmine in Louisville, Ky. on March 22 before hosting Mississippi Valley State on March 28. Other non-conference matchups include a road matchup at Ole Miss (Apr. 4), a home meeting against Memphis (Apr. 11), a neutral site contest versus Memphis in Lexington, Tenn. (Apr. 25) and a road game at North Alabama (May 3).
OVC play will begin with a three-game home series against Eastern Illinois (March 11-12). The Skyhawks will also play host to three-game series against Tennessee State (March 25-26), Tennessee Tech (Apr. 7-8) and Lindenwood (Apr. 22-23) in conference matchups. Rounding out the OVC slate are road series at SIUE (March 18-19), Southern Indiana (Apr. 1-2), Morehead State (Apr. 15-16) and Southeast Missouri (Apr. 29-30).
The OVC Softball Championship is scheduled for May 10-13 and will be held at Choccolocco Park in Oxford, Ala. for the seventh year with the top-eight programs qualifying for the field. UT Martin will look to advance to its 12th OVC Softball Championship in the past 14 championships.
Graphic courtesy of UT Martin Sports Information