Xavier Baseball Announces 2022 Schedule

CINCINNATI – Xavier baseball head coach Billy O'Conner announced the schedule for Spring 2022 this week, with the Musketeers set to open up play with Alabama on Friday, February 18 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

The Musketeers' home schedule begins on Wednesday, March 23 when Xavier hosts Michigan at Hayden Field.

Among Xavier's 22 scheduled opponents are seven teams that competed in last season's NCAA Tournament, including College World Series participant Tennessee.

Outside of BIG EAST play, Xavier will face opponents from 10 different conferences, including the SEC, Big Ten, Pac-12 and ACC.

The 2022 Musketeers look to make a third-straight trip to the BIG EAST Championship, co-hosted by Xavier at Prasco Park in Mason, Ohio, over Memorial Day Weekend. Xavier finished runners-up in each of the last two tournaments in 2019 and 2021.

* denotes BIG EAST opponent

Alabama (3 Games)
Fri., Feb. 18 - Sun., Feb. 20
Tuscaloosa, AL

The Crimson Tide went 32-26 overall and 12-17 in SEC play in 2021.
Alabama picked up wins over No. 24 South Carolina and No. 4 Tennessee to advance to the Friday round of the SEC Tournament. Losses to No. 13 Florida and No. 4 Tennessee eliminated the Crimson Tide.
Alabama earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament, picking up a win over Rider but falling to No. 16 NC State and No. 20 Louisiana Tech in Ruston, La.
This will be the first match-up between the two programs.

Louisville (1 Game)
Tues., Feb. 22
Louisville, KY

The Cardinals finished 2021 at 28-22 overall and 16-16 in ACC action.
Louisville picked up a win over Clemson but fell to Georgia Tech in pool play of the ACC Tournament and were eliminated on a tie-breaker to end the season.
Xavier is 18-38 all time against the Cardinals, last playing in 2020 in Louisville, an 8-5 loss for the Musketeers to the No. 4 ranked Cards.

Oregon State (3 Games)
Thur., Feb., 24 - Sat., Feb. 26
Surprise, AZ

The Beavers went 37-24 overall and 16-14 in Pac-12 play in 2021.
Oregon State earned a spot in the NCAA Fort Worth Regional, picking up three straight wins, against McNeese State, TCU and Dallas Baptist after falling in the opener to advance to the Regional Final where the Beaves fell to Dallas Baptist.
This is the first series between the two programs.

Northern Kentucky (2 Games)
Wed., March 2
Highland Heights, KY

Tues., May 17
Hayden Field

NKU went 17-31 overall and 14-25 in Horizon League play last season.
Xavier is 36-19-1 all time against the Norse with the last match-up occurring in 2020, a 24-15 win for the Musketeers in Highland Heights.

USC Upstate (3 Games)
Fri., March 4 - Sun., March 6
Spartanburg, SC

The Spartans went 37-16 overall and 28-12 in Big South play last season.
USC Upstate fell to the No. 3 seed Gardner-Webb and No. 1 seed Campbell in the Big South Baseball Championship to wrap up the 2021 season.
Xavier is 5-0 all time against USC Upstate, last facing the Spartans in 2018 in Spartanburg, S.C., a 7-1 Musketeer win.

South Carolina (1 Game)
Tues., March 8
Columbia, SC

South Carolina went 34-23 overall and 16-14 in SEC play in 2021.
After falling to Alabama in the SEC Tournament, the Gamecocks hosted an NCAA Regional, topping Virginia before being eliminated by losses to ODU and Virginia.
Xavier is 0-1 all time against the Gamecocks, falling to USC 7-2 in 1989.

Winthrop (1 Game)
Wed., March 9
Rock Hill, SC

The Eagles went 19-27 overall and 16-21 in Big South play in 2021.
Xavier is 0-6 all time against Winthrop, last playing in a three-game series in Rock Hill, SC, in 2007.

Coastal Carolina (4 Games)
Fri., March 11 - Sun., March 13
Myrtle Beach, SC

The Chanticleers went 27-24 overall and 9-12 in Sun Belt play in 2021.
After opening the Sun Belt Championship with a win over Little Rock, Coastal Carolina was eliminated by No. 1 seed South Alabama in pool play.
Xavier is 1-1 all time against Coastal Carolina, splitting a pair of games in 1991.

Wright State (2 Games)
Wed., March 16
Fairborn, OH

Tues., April 12
Hayden Field

Wright State went 35-13 overall and 28-4 in Horizon League play.
The Raiders claimed the Horizon League Tournament title and automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, where WSU fell to Tennessee and Duke in the Knoxville Regional.
Xavier is 31-38 all-time against the Raiders, last playing in 2019, including a home-and-home series and another game as part of the Joe Nuxhall Classic at Miami (Ohio). Wright State finished with a 2-1 series advantage that season.

Indiana (4 Games)
Fri., March 18 - Sun., March 20
Bloomington, IN

Indiana went 26-18 overall last season, playing just a Big Ten schedule.
No Big Ten Tournament was held in 2021.
Xavier is 3-20 all time against the Hoosiers, last facing off in a three-game series in Bloomington in 2017, a 3-0 sweep for IU.

Michigan (2 Games)
Wed., March 23
Hayden Field

Tues., May 10
Ann Arbor, MI

The Wolverines went 27-19 overall and 27-17 in Big Ten play in 2021.
After playing a conference only-schedule, and with no Big Ten Tournament in 2021, Michigan earned a spot in the South Bend Regional of the NCAA Tournament, falling to UConn and Central Michigan to close out the season.
Xavier is 2-3 all-time against Michigan, last playing in a two-game series in 2012 with the Musketeers going 2-0 against the Wolverines.
The game set for March 23 will be the home opener for the Musketeers.

Cincinnati (4 Games)
Fri., March 25 - Sun., March 27 and Tues., March 29 (Joe Nuxhall Classic)
Cincinnati, Ohio

Cincinnati went 29-26 overall and 18-14 in AAC play in 2021.
The Bearcats fell to No. 5 seed UCF and No. 1 seed ECU in the American Athletic Conference Championship to end the season last year.
Xavier is 47-70 all time against the Bearcats after splitting last season's home-and-home series 2-2.
Cincinnati will host the first game of the 2022 series, followed by a game at Hayden Field and one at Prasco Park. The final game will be at Cincinnati, and is part of the Joe Nuxhall Classic.

Western Carolina (3 Games)
Fri. April 1 - Sun., April 3
Prasco Park / Hayden Field

Western Carolina went 28-21 overall and 14-11 in SoCon play in 2021.
The Catamounts advanced to the Championship game of the SoCon Tournament before falling to Samford.
Xavier is 1-2 all time against WCU, playing a three-game series in Cullowhee, N.C., in 2007.

Joe Nuxhall Classic (1 Game)
Tues., April 5
Oxford, OH

The Joe Nuxhall Classic returns for the first time since 2019. It in 2009 to honor its namesake, the legendary Reds player and announcer Joe Nuxhall, and to promote and celebrate amateur baseball in southwest Ohio.
Along with Xavier, Cincinnati, Miami and Wright State have participated in the classic each year, with the event switching between UC and Miami.
Xavier is 9-13 all-time in Joe Nuxhall Classic games, including claiming the inaugural title in 2009. The Musketeers were also runners-up in 2017.
Xavier opens play with Cincinnati on Tuesday, March 29, then will travel to Miami (Ohio) for its second-match up, with the opponent to be determined.

Seton Hall (3 Games) *
Fri., April 8 - Sun., April 10
South Orange, NJ

Seton Hall finished 23-25 overall and 16-11 in BIG EAST play to earn the No. 3 seed in the BIG EAST Championship.
In the BIG EAST Tournament, the Pirates fell to Creighton and Xavier to wrap up the season.
Xavier is 12-13 all-time against the Pirates, including going 3-2 against SHU last season. The two teams split the regular season series in Cincinnati, 2-2, and the Musketeers picked up a 4-2 win over the Pirates in the elimination bracket of the BIG EAST Championship.

Villanova (3 Games) *
Thur., April 14 - Sat., April 16
Hayden Field

Villanova went 21-14 overall and 9-12 in BIG EAST play in 2021, finishing fifth in the league standings.
The Wildcats finished non-conference play with a 12-2 record in 2021.
Xavier is 13-8 all-time against the Wildcats after going 1-2 against VU in Philadelphia last season.

Eastern Kentucky (1 Game)
Tues., April 19
Richmond, KY

Eastern Kentucky went 21-32 overall and 13-17 in Ohio Valley Conference play last season.
Xavier is 20-27 against EKU all-time, last playing in 2019, a 5-3 loss for the Musketeers in Richmond.

Georgetown (3 Games) *
Fri., April 22 - Sun., April 24
Washington, DC

The Hoyas went 6-25 overall and 6-19 in BIG EAST play in 2021, finishing eighth in the final conference standings.
Xavier is 16-7 against the Hoyas all-time after taking four of five in Cincinnati during the regular season in 2021.

Tennessee (1 Game)
Tues., April 26
Knoxville, TN

Tennessee went 50-18 overall and 20-10 in SEC play in 2021, winning the SEC East Division.
The Vols advanced to the SEC Tournament finals, falling to No. 1 Arkansas, and earned the No. 3 national seed on the NCAA Tournament.
The Vols advanced to the College World Series where they fell to Texas.
Xavier is 0-3 against the Vols all-time after playing a three-game series in Knoxville in 2010.

Creighton (3 Games) *
Fri., April 29 - Sun., May 1
Cincinnati

Creighton went 24-15 overall and 15-6 in BIG EAST play to earn the No. 2 seed in the BIG EAST Championship.
The Bluejays picked up a win over Seton Hall in the BIG EAST Championship opener before falling to UConn and Xavier to end the season.
Xavier is 14-15 all-time against the Bluejays after going 3-2 against CU last season. The Musketeers split the regular season series, 2-2, in Omaha, then picked up a 2-1 win in the elimination bracket of the BIG EAST Championship.

Butler (3 Games) *
Fri., May 6 - Sun., May 8
Indianapolis, IN

Butler went 14-23 overall and 8-13 in BIG EAST play, finishing seventh in the league standings in 2021.
Xavier is 62-34 all time against the Bulldogs after going 3-1 in the four-game series in Cincinnati last season.

Connecticut (3 Games) *
Fri., May 13 – Sun., May 15
Storrs, CT

UConn finished the season 34-19 overall and 13-4 in BIG EAST play to finish in first place and earn the No. 1 seed to the BIG EAST Championship.
UConn won the league tournament and earned the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament were the Huskies picked up a win over Michigan in the South Bend Regional before the were eliminated with losses to Notre Dame and Central Michigan.
Xavier is 3-5 all-time against the Huskies after going 3-4 against UConn last season following its return to the BIG EAST.
The two team's split the regular season series, 2-2, in Cincinnati, then faced each other three times in the BIG EAST Championship, with No. 1 seed UConn winning the first match-up 11-1 and Xavier taking the 5-4 win in the first game of the BIG EAST Championship Series to force a deciding game seven, where the Huskies took a 10-6 win and the tournament title.

St. John's (3 Games) *
Thur., May 19 – Sat., May 21
Hayden Field

St. John's went 19-21 overall and 10-16 in BIG EAST play to finish sixth in the conference standings in 2021.
Xavier is 12-15 all-time against the Red Storm after going 2-1 against SJU in Queens last season.

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