BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – With a successful fall campaign in the books, WKU Softball head coach Amy Tudor and her staff have announced the upcoming 2019 spring slate. After graduating just one player off last season's squad, the Red and White return an experience-filled roster paired with five freshmen and a senior transfer all looking to making an immediate impact.
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"We put ourselves in challenging situations that will prepare us for Conference USA play with this schedule," Coach Tudor shared. "It gives us an opportunity to play top opponents to improve our RPI as well as using it for measurement and preparation for a shot at postseason play."
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The Red and White will take on four squads that appeared in the NCAA Tournament a year ago and will host 19 contests at the WKU Softball Complex this spring.
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The 54-game regular-season slate will kick off with a trip south to Gulf Shores, Ala., for the Sand Dollar Classic. Play will begin Friday, Feb. 8, against Missouri State followed a tilt with Auburn. On the second day, WKU will face off with Florida A&M and Tennessee State before closing weekend play with a game against South Alabama.
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| Opponent | Date | Time | Conference |
| Missouri State | Friday, Feb. 8 | 11 a.m. CT | Missouri Valley |
| Auburn | Friday, Feb. 8 | 5 p.m. CT | SEC |
| Florida A&M | Saturday, Feb. 9 | 11 a.m. CT | MEAC |
| Tennessee State | Saturday, Feb. 9 | 2 p.m. CT | Ohio Valley |
| South Alabama | Sunday, Feb. 10 | 10 a.m. CT | Sun Belt |
The second weekend of the 2019 slate features a three-game series on The Hill as the Western Illinois Leathernecks come to town. Action will include a doubleheader on Saturday followed by a single contest on Sunday.
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For the third weekend of the campaign, Tudor and company will stay home and host their lone tournament of the 2019 season as Butler, Cleveland State and Indiana State come to town.
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| Opponent | Date | Time | Conference |
| Butler | Friday, Feb. 22 | 3 p.m. CT | Big East |
| Cleveland State | Friday, Feb. 22 | 5:30 p.m. CT | Horizon |
| Indiana State | Saturday, Feb. 23 | 12:30 p.m. CT | Missouri Valley |
| TBD (1 vs. 4/2 vs. 3) | Saturday, Feb. 23 | 3/5:30 p.m. CT | |
| TBD (Champ./Cons.) | Sunday, Feb. 24 | 11 a.m./1:30 p.m. CT |
After eight-straight games in Bowling Green, WKU Softball will hit the road again, opening a stretch of 12-consecutive games away from home and head to a Samford-hosted tournament. While in Birmingham, Ala., the Hilltoppers will take on Evansville, Jackson State, Houston Baptist and Samford across the weekend.
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| Opponent | Date | Time | Conference |
| Evansville | Friday, March 1 | 10 a.m. CT | Missouri Valley |
| Jackson State | Saturday, March 2 | 2 p.m. CT | SWAC |
| Houston Baptist | Sunday, March 3 | 11 a.m. CT | Southland |
| Samford | Sunday, March 3 | 3 p.m. CT | SoCon |
WKU will close non-conference tournament play with a trip to Kennesaw, Ga., for the Bobbie Bailey Memorial Tournament from March 8-10. The Red and White will take on Wright State, Kennesaw State and Saint Louis across the weekend.
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| Opponent | Date | Time | Conference |
| Wright State | Friday, March 8 | 10:30 a.m. CT | Horizon |
| Kennesaw State | Friday, March 8 | 1 p.m. CT | Atlantic Sun |
| Saint Louis | Saturday, March 9 | 1:30 p.m. CT | Atlantic 10 |
| TBD (1 vs. 4/2 vs. 3) | Saturday, March 9 | 4/6:30 p.m. CT | |
| TBD (Champ./Cons.) | Sunday, March 10 | 9/11:30 a.m. CT |
Of the 17 different teams the Hilltoppers will face before reaching their first Conference USA opponent in 2019, WKU will face squads from 13 different conferences.
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Already through the fifth week of the season, WKU will make a quick midweek trip to Lipscomb on March 13 before heading to Miami, Fla., a couple days later to open C-USA action. The Panthers will mark the first of six league foes the Hilltoppers will face that appeared in last season's Conference USA Tournament in Charlotte, N.C.
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The following weekend, the Red and White will host Charlotte before heading up to Lexington to take on the Kentucky squad that advanced to the NCAA Super Sectionals last season. The Wildcats join Auburn and Louisville as Power Five opponents of the Hilltoppers in 2019.
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Remaining in the non-conference column for April and May are a doubleheader at Tennessee Tech (April 17) while Louisville (April 3), Austin Peay (April 24) and Murray State (May 1) will all visit The Hill.
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| Remaining Non-Conference Games | |||
| Opponent | Date | Time (CT) | Location |
| Western Illinois (Series) | Sat. – Sun., Feb. 16-17 | 1 & 3 p.m./1 p.m. | Bowling Green, Ky. |
| Lipscomb | Wednesday, March 13 | 4 p.m. | Nashville, Tenn. |
| Kentucky | Tuesday, March 26 | 5 p.m. | Lexington, Ky. |
| Louisville | Wednesday, April 3 | 5 p.m. | Bowling Green, Ky. |
| Tennessee Tech (DH) | Wednesday, April 17 | 2 & 4 p.m.    | Cookeville, Tenn. |
| Austin Peay (DH) | Wednesday, April 24 | 4 & 6 p.m. | Bowling Green, Ky. |
| Murray State | Wednesday, May 1 | 5 p.m. | Bowling Green, Ky. |
WKU's remaining conference slate includes trips to Marshall, Middle Tennessee and Louisiana Tech while the Hilltoppers will also host Florida Atlantic, North Texas and UTSA on the year. Over the last two seasons, four of the eight league squads WKU will face in the regular season have appeared in the NCAA Tournament (2017: Marshall, FIU, Louisiana Tech; 2018: Middle Tennessee).
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| Conference USA Series | |||
| Opponent | Date | Time (CT) | Location |
| FIU | Sat.-Sun., March 16-17 | 3 & 5 p.m. / 11 a.m. | Miami, Fla. |
| Charlotte | Sat.-Sun., March 23-24 | 1 & 3 p.m. / 1 p.m. | Bowling Green, Ky. |
| Florida Atlantic | Sat. - Sun., March 30-31 | 1 & 3 p.m. / 1 p.m. | Bowling Green, Ky. |
| Marshall | Sat.-Sun., April 6-7 | Noon & 2 p.m. / 11 a.m. | Huntington, W.Va. |
| North Texas | Sat.-Sun., April 13-14 | 1 & 3 p.m. / 1 p.m. | Bowling Green, Ky. |
| Middle Tennessee | Fri.-Sat., April 19-20 | 1 & 3 p.m. / 1 p.m. | Murfreesboro, Tenn. |
| Louisiana Tech | Sat.-Sun., April 27-28 | 1 & 3 p.m. / Noon | Ruston, La. |
| UTSA | Sat.-Sun., May 4-5 | 1 & 3 p.m. / 1 p.m. | Bowling Green, Ky. |
The 2018 Conference USA Tournament will be hosted by UAB this season as the Hilltoppers will have their sights set on making their third-straight trip to the post-season event and fourth in the last five season.
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In total, WKU will face squads from 15 different conferences in 2019. For the seventh-straight season, the Hilltoppers have multiple SEC squads on the schedule. WKU has faced at least one team out of the SEC every season since the program's inception in 2000.
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Eleven squads on the Hilltoppers' 2019 slate won 30-plus games last year including the Auburn squad that posted a 41-17 record. WKU will face two regular-season conference champions (Kennesaw State, Florida Atlantic) along with a pair of conference tournament winners (Kennesaw State, Middle Tennessee) this season.
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How to Follow the Hilltoppers: For complete information on WKU Softball, follow the team on Twitter at @WKUSoftball, Instagram @WKU_Softball and Facebook /WKUSoftball.
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