IU softball unveiled its 54-game 2017 regular season schedule Wednesday, including six tournaments before conference play begins and 16 games played at home.
The Hoosiers have set up a challenging schedule for themselves, playing 24 games against teams that made it to the NCAA Tournament and finished in the top 50 of the RPI. They also play 11 games against teams who finished the season ranked in the top 25.
“I’m really looking forward to this season’s schedule,” IU Coach Michelle Gardner said in a release. “We will play in six tournaments to start the year, and those will challenge us at every stop and help shape our team’s identity. By facing some of the nation’s best in non-conference, we can really test ourselves and prepare ourselves for Big Ten play.”
For the fifth year in a row, IU will begin its season Feb. 10 at the Kajikawa Classic in Tempe, Arizona. From there, the Hoosiers will play tournaments in Texas, Alabama, southern California and Tennessee before playing in the Hoosier Classic in mid-March in Bloomington.
The Judi Garman Classic in Fullerton, California, will likely present IU’s biggest test in the nonconference, with each of the Hoosiers’ opponents in the tournament having made it to the NCAA Tournament and finished in the top 40 of the RPI.
IU will play eight Big Ten series in the conference schedule, including four at home, before the Big Ten Tournament begins in early May. Last season, the Hoosiers secured their highest win total since 2012 and won a Big Ten Tournament game for the first time in 10 years.
Jake Thomer
