University of Louisville Baseball Team Releases 2013 Schedule

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Slated to play the second most home games in school history at an expanded Jim Patterson Stadium, the Louisville baseball program released its 2013 schedule on Wednesday afternoon.

The Cardinals are scheduled to host 36 games overall at Jim Patterson Stadium, second only to the 43 home games played during the 1980 season. The home portion of the schedule is highlighted by a weekend series against 2012 College World Series qualifier Kent State (March 1-3), a three-game set with Southeastern Conference foe Alabama, a two-game series against 12-time national champion USC and mid-week games against regional rivals Vanderbilt, Kentucky, Purdue, Indiana and Western Kentucky. Louisville will also host four BIG EAST Conference series in 2013 with visits from Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Rutgers and Georgetown.

“With the expansion of Jim Patterson Stadium placing it among the elite college ballparks in the nation, it was paramount that we build a home schedule that gives our fans as many opportunities as possible to see their team compete against some of the top programs around this region and throughout the nation,” said head coach Dan McDonnell, who is entering his seventh season with the Cardinals. “Coming off of another BIG EAST championship season, our fifth NCAA Regional in six years and our fourth NCAA Regional final, it was also important to have a schedule that would prepare us for the post-season. With the team we have returning for 2013, the high expectations in our program and the success we’ve had in the past, we believe this very competitive schedule could be the final piece in the formula to take us to Omaha again.”

Chad Green, an Effingham High School graduate, competes for Louisville.

Louisville will open the 2013 season at the BIG EAST/Big Ten Challenge where they will face Indiana (Feb. 15, Dunedin, Fla.), USF (Feb. 16, Clearwater, Fla.) and Purdue (Feb. 17, St. Petersburg, Fla.), an NCAA Regional host in 2012. The Cardinals are 8-1 all-time in the event, which is hosted by the St. Petersburg/Clearwater Area Sports Commission.

U of L will then open its home slate in the expanded Jim Patterson Stadium on Wednesday, Feb. 20 against in-state foe Eastern Kentucky. The expansion project will increase capacity to the Cardinals’ home ballpark to more than 4,000, including 3,000 chairback seats, making it the largest facility in the BIG EAST Conference and one of the largest in the nation.

The home-opener will be followed by the first of six straight weekends at home when the Cardinals host Mid-American Conference member Akron on Feb. 22-24. After a midweek home game against Morehead State, Louisville will open the month of March with the three-game showdown at Patterson Stadium against Kent State (March 1-3), which went 1-2 in Omaha and finished the season ranked as highly as No. 6 in the nation.

Following a midweek road contest at Eastern Kentucky (March 6), the Cardinals will return to Patterson Stadium to open a 12-game homestand on March 8-10 against Alabama. That will be followed by a mid-week game against Purdue on March 13. After a weekend series against Xavier (March 15-17), Louisville will host Pac-12 Conference foe USC for a pair of midweek games on March 19-20.

BIG EAST Conference action will begin with a three-game series at home against Rutgers (March 22-24), which will be followed by a midweek road game at Indiana on March 26. League action will resume on March 28-30 when Notre Dame visits Louisville for a three-game slate.

The month of April will begin with a midweek visit from in-state rival Kentucky (April 2) before Louisville takes to the road for a weekend series against long-time conference rival Cincinnati on April 5-7. Following a midweek game at Western Kentucky on April 9, the Cardinals host Southern Conference foe Elon for a three-game, non-conference set at Jim Patterson Stadium. That will be followed by a midweek road game at Kentucky (April 16) and a weekend series at reigning BIG EAST Tournament champion and 2012 NCAA Super Regional qualifier St. John’s on April 19-21.

The Cardinals will then return home for a midweek home game against SEC foe Vanderbilt on April 23 before hosting Georgetown for a three-game set on April 26-28. Louisville will close the month at home against Western Kentucky on April 30.

The final month of the regular season will begin with a weekend BIG EAST series at Villanova on May 3-5. After a midweek home game against Indiana on May 8, the Cardinals will return to the road for a three-game set at Connecticut (May 10-12). Following a midweek road game at Ohio State on May 14), Louisville will close the regular season with a home series against Pittsburgh on May 16-18.

The 2013 BIG EAST Championship is set for May 22-26 at Bright House Field in Clearwater, Fla., where the Cardinals have won two tournament titles and have an 18-8 record overall. The 2013 NCAA Championship is scheduled to begin on May 31 with regional play. The College World Series in Omaha, Neb., is slated from June 15-25/26 at TD Ameritrade Park.

Live audio and/or video coverage for all 56 regular season games and all post-season games for the Cardinals in 2013 will be available to subscribers through CardsTV at UofLsports.com. All radio and television arrangements for the 2013 Louisville baseball season will be announced at a later date.

Fans can follow Louisville baseball on Twitter at http://twitter.com/uoflbaseball and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ulbaseball.

2013 Louisville Baseball Schedule Notes

-- Elementary School Day is set for Wednesday, March 13 when Purdue visits Louisville.

-- The series opener against Elon on Friday, April 12 will be the Cardinals’ Patriotic Game at Jim Patterson Stadium.

-- Cancer Awareness Night at the ballpark is set for Wednesday, May 8 against Indiana.

-- The Cardinals are 180-70 (.720 winning percentage) all-time at Jim Patterson Stadium, which opened in April 2005.

-- Alabama will be the sixth different SEC team to visit Louisville for a non-conference matchup in the last nine years joining Kentucky, Vanderbilt, Tennessee, Ole Miss and Georgia.

-- The visit by USC will mark the second straight season a school from the state of California has visited Jim Patterson Stadium after Pepperdine played a three-game series in 2012.

-- From Feb. 20 to April 2, the Cardinals will play 24 of 26 games at Jim Patterson Stadium.

-- Despite a very home friendly schedule, Louisville will close the 2013 season with seven of its last 11 games on the road.

-- Louisville will continue its commitment to the fan experience by offering FREE ADMISSION to all home games at Jim Patterson Stadium. The lone exception is the April 2 contest vs. Kentucky ($10 reserved seating) to accommodate the high demand.

-- For more information on the newly expanded Jim Patterson Stadium, visit www.baseballexpansion.com.

-- Complete promotions and special event schedule will be announced in late January.

About Louisville Baseball

Louisville, which won its third BIG EAST regular season title in the last four seasons in 2012, is led by the return of seven of its school record 10 All-BIG EAST performers from last season, including second team outfielders Adam Engel and Cole Sturgeon. Most of the Cardinals’ pitching staff returns for 2013, led by BIG EAST Rookie of the Year and Freshman All-American right-hander Jared Ruxer.

Overall, Louisville returns 21 letterwinners from the 2012 team, which finished 41-22 and advanced to an NCAA Regional for the fifth time in six seasons.

Head coach Dan McDonnell enters his seventh season leading the Louisville baseball program. In his six previous seasons, McDonnell is 258-122 with three BIG EAST regular-season titles, two BIG EAST Tournament titles, five NCAA Regional berths, two NCAA Super Regional appearances and one College World Series berth.