University of Massachusets Athletics
Softball Releases 2006 Schedule
September 12, 2005 | Softball
Sept. 12, 2005
AMHERST, Mass. -- University of Massachusetts head softball coach Elaine Sortino has released the 2006 schedule. The Minutewomen will play in four preseason tournaments against some of the nation's top teams. UMass will also host 17 games at the UMass Softball Complex as they look for their 18th Atlantic 10 title. UMass was 37-16-1 a year ago and won the A-10 Tournament. The Minutewomen also advanced to their 11th straight and 15th overall NCAA Tournament.
"This is one of the most aggressive schedules that we have played to date," said Sortino. "We are going to spend a long time on the road against some very challenging competition. The tough early season slate will help to prepare us for the very competitive A-10 and regional schedule."
UMass opens up with four tournaments during the first six weeks of February and March. The Minutewomen begin the 2006 season at the Campbell Classic in San Diego, Calif., Feb. 10-12. After a week off, UMass will again participate in the prestigious NFCA Leadoff Classic in Columbus, Ga., Feb. 24-26. UMass then enjoys the first week of March off before heading to Florida for consecutive weekends later in the month. UMass will play in the Speedline Invitational (March 9-12 in Tampa, Fla.) and the Florida Atlantic Invitational (March 17-19 in Boca Raton, Fla.). The tournament pairings have not been set yet, but UMass will face several teams ranked in the top 25 poll in all four of them.
UMass will then open up the conference slate with a doubleheader March 24 at George Washington. The home opener at the UMass Softball Complex is set for March 29. The Minutewomen will host Dartmouth. They have won 101 of the 110 games played at its new home which opened in 2000. All told, UMass will travel 14,542 miles before playing its first home game.
UMass rounds out March and rings in April with a pair of conference doubleheaders. It will be at La Salle on March 31 and Fordham on April 1. The Minutewomen will then have a week off before hosting new A-10 member Charlotte on April 9. Following a single game at UConn on April 11, the Minutewomen return home to host doubleheaders against Saint Joseph's (April 14) and Temple (April 16). UMass then heads out for a mini five-game road trip with stops at Boston College for a single game (April 18) and doubleheaders at Central Connecticut (April 20) as well as A-10 newcomer Saint Louis (April 23).
The Minutewomen begin a 10-game homestand against Connecticut on April 25. Other games during the 12-day stretch are Rhode Island (April 26), Harvard (April 27), Dayton (April 29), Maine (May 2) and Boston College (May 3). Senior Day will be against Dayton. UMass closes out the regular season at St. Bonaventure on May 5.
The 2006 A-10 Tournament will be May 11-13 at the Ambler Complex outside of Philadelphia, Pa. Temple University will serve as the host school.
2005-06 Softball Schedule
| Day | Date | Opponent | Location | TV | Outcome/Time |
| Sat | 09/17/05 | Uconn | Amherst, Mass. | | 11:00 AM |
| Sat | 09/17/05 | Bryant College | Amherst, Mass. | | 12:45 PM |
| Sun | 09/18/05 | Uconn | Amherst, Mass. | | 2:00 PM |
| Sun | 09/18/05 | Holy Cross | Amherst, Mass. | | 3:45 PM |
| Sat | 09/24/05 | Uconn | Storrs, Conn. | | 10:30 AM |
| Sat | 09/24/05 | Boston College | Storrs, Conn. | | 12:15 PM |
| Sun | 09/25/05 | LIU | Storrs, Conn. | | 12:15 PM |
| Sun | 09/25/05 | Boston College | Storrs, Conn. | | 4:00 PM |
| Sat | 10/01/05 | Albany | Amherst, Mass. | | 12:15 PM |
| Sat | 10/01/05 | Boston College | Amherst, Mass. | | 2:00 PM |
| Sun | 10/02/05 | Maine | Amherst, Mass. | | 11:00 AM |
| Sun | 10/02/05 | Vermont | Amherst, Mass. | | 3:00 PM |
| Sat | 10/08/05 | Alumnae Game | Amherst, Mass. | | 11:00 AM |
| Fri | 02/10/06 | Campbell Classic | San Diego, Calif. | | TBA |
| Sat | 02/11/06 | Campbell Classic | San Diego, Calif. | | TBA |
| Sun | 02/12/06 | Campbell Classic | San Diego, Calif. | | TBA |
| Fri | 02/24/06 | NFCA Leadoff Classic | Columbus, Ga. | | TBA |
| Sat | 02/25/06 | NFCA Leadoff Classic | Columbus, Ga. | | TBA |
| Sun | 02/26/06 | NFCA Leadoff Classic | Columbus, Ga. | | TBA |
| Thu | 03/09/06 | Speedline Invitational | Tampa, Fla. | | TBA |
| Fri | 03/10/06 | Speedline Invitational | Tampa, Fla. | | TBA |
| Sat | 03/11/06 | Speedline Invitational | Tampa, Fla. | | TBA |
| Sun | 03/12/06 | Speedline Invitational | Tampa, Fla. | | TBA |
| Fri | 03/17/06 | Florida Atlantic Invitational | Boca Raton, Fla. | | TBA |
| Sat | 03/18/06 | Florida Atlantic Invitational | Boca Raton, Fla. | | TBA |
| Sun | 03/19/06 | Florida Atlantic Invitational | Boca Raton, Fla. | | TBA |
| Fri | 03/24/06 | George Washington* | Washington, D.C. | | TBA |
| Fri | 03/24/06 | George Washington* | Washington, D.C. | | TBA |
| Wed | 03/29/06 | Dartmouth | Amherst, Mass. | | TBA |
| Wed | 03/29/06 | Dartmouth | Amherst, Mass. | | TBA |
| Fri | 03/31/06 | La Salle* | Philadelphia, Pa. | | TBA |
| Fri | 03/31/06 | La Salle* | Philadelphia, Pa. | | TBA |
| Sat | 04/01/06 | Fordham* | Bronx, N.Y. | | TBA |
| Sat | 04/01/06 | Fordham* | Bronx, N.Y. | | TBA |
| Sun | 04/09/06 | Charlotte* | Amherst, Mass. | | TBA |
| Sun | 04/09/06 | Charlotte* | Amherst, Mass. | | TBA |
| Tue | 04/11/06 | Connecticut | Storrs, Conn. | | TBA |
| Fri | 04/14/06 | Saint Joseph's* | Amherst, Mass. | | TBA |
| Fri | 04/14/06 | Saint Joseph's* | Amherst, Mass. | | TBA |
| Sun | 04/16/06 | Temple* | Amherst, Mass. | | TBA |
| Sun | 04/16/06 | Temple* | Amherst, Mass. | | TBA |
| Tue | 04/18/06 | Boston College | Chestnut Hill, Mass. | | TBA |
| Thu | 04/20/06 | Central Connecticut | New Britain, Conn. | | TBA |
| Thu | 04/20/06 | Central Connecticut | New Britain, Conn. | | TBA |
| Sun | 04/23/06 | Saint Louis* | St. Louis, Mo. | | TBA |
| Sun | 04/23/06 | Saint Louis* | St. Louis, Mo. | | TBA |
| Tue | 04/25/06 | Connecticut | Amherst, Mass. | | TBA |
| Wed | 04/26/06 | Rhode Island* | Amherst, Mass. | | TBA |
| Wed | 04/26/06 | Rhode Island* | Amherst, Mass. | | TBA |
| Thu | 04/27/06 | Harvard | Amherst, Mass. | | TBA |
| Thu | 04/27/06 | Harvard | Amherst, Mass. | | TBA |
| Sat | 04/29/06 | Dayton* | Amherst, Mass. | | TBA |
| Sat | 04/29/06 | Dayton* | Amherst, Mass. | | TBA |
| Tue | 05/02/06 | Maine | Amherst, Mass. | | TBA |
| Tue | 05/02/06 | Maine | Amherst, Mass. | | TBA |
| Wed | 05/03/06 | Boston College | Amherst, Mass. | | TBA |
| Fri | 05/05/06 | St. Bonaventure* | Olean, N.Y. | | TBA |
| Fri | 05/05/06 | St. Bonaventure* | Olean, N.Y. | | TBA |
| Thu | 05/11/06 | A-10 Tournament | Philadelphia, Pa. | | TBA |
| Fri | 05/12/06 | A-10 Tournament | Philadelphia, Pa. | | TBA |
| Sat | 05/13/06 | A-10 Tournament | Philadelphia, Pa. | | TBA |
* Denotes Atlantic 10 Conference Game
All Home Games Played At The UMass Softball Complex