WKU announces home-heavy baseball schedule

Brad Stephens

Matt Myers will spend plenty of time in the home dugout during his first season as WKU’s head coach.

The Toppers released their 2012 schedule Thursday, featuring 33 games at Nick Denes Field and a May 1 date with Louisville at Bowling Green Ballpark.

“We want to be good at winning at home,” Myers said in a release. “The opportunity to have 33 at the Nick and one at Bowling Green Ballpark, I think is great.”

Absent from the WKU schedule is a home date with Kentucky.

The Toppers played the Wildcats at Bowling Green Ballpark the last two seasons, beating them 24-8 in 2010 and 11-8 in 2011.

WKU will go to Lexington to play UK March 27.

Fourteen of the Toppers’ first 16 games will be at home.

The team opens with a three-game set against Toledo, starting Feb. 17.

WKU will then have a midweek game at Tennessee before coming back for a weekend series with Southern Illinois.

After a Tuesday road matchup with Murray State Feb. 28, the Toppers will play eight straight at Nick Denes Field, hosting Kent State, Evansville, Western Illinois and Butler.

WKU opens Sun Belt Conference play March 16 in Murfreesboro, Tenn., against Middle Tennessee State.

The Toppers’ first home league series will see the Toppers square off with Florida International, starting March 23.

WKU will host the Sun Belt Tournament May 23-27 at Nick Denes Field.

Another notable absence from the WKU schedule is Vanderbilt, a College World Series participant from one year ago.

It will be the first year since 1982 that the Toppers and Commodores haven’t met.

WKU will also not play in any preseason tournaments after playing in both the Baseball in the Beach tournament in Myrtle Beach, S.C., and the College of Charleston Tournament in Charleston, S.C., early in the 2011 season.