OREGON
» Conference: Pac-12
» Dates: Feb. 17-20
» Site: Les Murakami Stadium
» 2011 record: 33-26-1
» 2011 RPI: 51
» History: UH leads 11-3
» Coach: George Horton
Top draft prospect Christian Jones will miss the season due to injury. Right-hander Jake Reed and outfielders Billy Flamion and Spencer O’Neil are among Baseball America’s top 25 freshmen in the country. Senior Alex Keudell is the lone returning starting pitcher. He struck out nine in five innings against the Rainbows last season.
WAGNER
» Conference: Northeast
» Dates: Feb. 23-26
» Site: Les Murakami Stadium
» 2011 record: 18-33
» 2011 RPI: 245
» History: First meeting
» Coach: Jim Carone
Carone was elevated from pitching coach to head coach just two weeks ago. The Seahawks were picked to finish seventh in their conference. Senior right-hander Ryan Van Spronsen is the top returning pitcher, logging 62 innings with 34 strikeouts and 17 walks last year. Tommy Higgins hit .329 with 24 RBIs and 10 stolen bases.
WICHITA STATE
» Conference: Missouri Valley
» Dates: March 1-4
» Site: Les Murakami Stadium
» 2011 record: 39-26
» 2011 RPI: 71
» History: WSU leads 21-18
» Coach: Gene Stephenson
The Shockers, picked to finish third in their conference, are ranked No. 37 by Collegiate Baseball and are receiving votes in the ESPN/USA Today Top 25. Sophomore right-hander Cale Elam has been named to the preseason watch list for the NCBWA Stopper of the Year award. First baseman Johnny Coy was first-team all-conference last year.
CENTRAL MICHIGAN
» Conference: Mid-American
» Dates: March 7-10
» Site: Les Murakami Stadium
» 2011 record: 31-27
» 2011 RPI: 132
» History: First meeting
» Coach: Steve Jaksa
The Chippewas are favored to win the MAC West Division for the third year in a row. Senior right-hander Zach Cooper returns after not signing with the Florida Marlins as a 46th-round draft pick. Junior lefty Rick Dodridge returns to the rotation after missing 2011 with an injury. CMU plays its first 16 games on the road.
SAN FRANCISCO
» Conference: West Coast
» Dates: March 15-18
» Site: Les Murakami Stadium
» 2011 record: 32-25
» 2011 RPI: 92
» History: UH leads 10-9
» Coach: Nino Giarratan
The Dons return five players who earned WCC honors last year, including first-teamers Nik Balog and Kyle Zimmer. Zimmer, a junior right-handed pitcher, was named a second-team All-American by Baseball America. He outdueled UCLA pitcher Gerrit Cole in a regional last year, striking out 11 in a four-hit shutout.
PORTLAND
» Conference: West Coast
» Date: March 20
» Site: Joe Etzel Field (Portland, Ore.)
» 2011 record: 23-31
» 2011 RPI: 186
» History: Portland leads 4-3
» Coach: Chris Sperry
UH begins its first road trip of the year with a single game at Portland. Senior right-hander Kyle Kraus and sophomore outfielder/designated hitter Turner Gill were both named to the preseason All-WCC team. Kraus is five wins shy of tying the school’s career record.
GONZAGA
» Conference: West Coast
» Dates: March 22-25
» Site: Washington Trust Field (Spokane, Wash.)
» 2011 record: 32-19-1
» 2011 RPI: 70
» History: UH leads 10-3
» Coach: Mark Machtolf
The Rainbows have a chance to improve their RPI with four road games against a quality opponent. The Zags were picked to finish second in the WCC and are led by reigning WCC co-player of the year Marco Gonzales. He led the conference with 11 wins and was second with 90 strikeouts. When not on the mound, he played first base and hit .291, making only one error.
UC DAVIS
» Conference: Big West
» Dates: March 29-April 1
» Site: Les Murakami Stadium
» 2011 record: 18-36
» 2011 RPI: 211
» History: UC Davis leads 1-0
» Coach: Rex Peters
UH will also play at UC Davis for a single game on May 14. Left-hander Anthony Kupbens was selected the Big West preseason pitcher of the year by College Sports Madness. Kupbens went 5-8 with a 2.36 ERA last year, striking out 69 to just 25 walks. The Aggies finished 10-14 in league play, struggling more with a tough early nonconference schedule.
ST. MARY’S
» Conference: West Coast
» Dates: April 13-15
» Site: Les Murakami Stadium
» 2011 record: 27-28
» 2011 RPI: 190
» History: UH leads 11-5
» Coach: Jedd Soto
The Gaels return all but one pitcher from a staff that set a school single-season record with a 3.37 team ERA in 2011. Junior righty Martin Agosta is ranked No. 76 on Baseball America’s Top 100 prospect list. Senior right-hander Kyle Barraclough returns after being drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 40th round.
GRAMBLING STATE
» Conference: Southwestern Atlantic
» Dates: April 24
» Site: Tiger Stadium (Grambling, La.)
» 2011 record: 23-26
» 2011 RPI: 259
» History: UH leads 1-0
» Coach: James Cooper
UH plays the Tigers in a single game between road series at San Jose State and Louisiana Tech. Sophomore Thomas Brown III is the lone all-conference returnee after hitting .287 with 34 runs and 45 RBIs.
