2018 Schedule

SAN FRANCISCO – Approaching the program's 10th season, Academy of Art University softball head coach Sonja Garnett and her staff have made the Urban Knights' 2018 campaign official.

"We always want to play the best competition we can and try to maximize our schedule," said Garnett. "This year we will play 53 games, most of them in region. The overall goal is to put our team in the best position possible to compete for postseason."

Following ART U's Alumni Game on Jan. 20, the season opens in Las Vegas with the team's first appearance at the Montana State Desert Stinger Tournament since 2013. Opening day, Feb. 2, will feature matchups with the host Yellow Jackets and 2016 NCAA West Regional runner-up Chico State followed by Feb. 3 contests against SF State and UC San Diego. The three-day tournament ends with a single game against defending Great Northwest Athletic Conference regular season champion Central Washington.

"The Desert Stinger is a great tournament for in-region games and is an opportunity to begin the year with strong competition," said Garnett. "Between the Desert Stinger and Tournament of Champions, we will play 11 games and get great tournament experience."

The Urban Knights' home-opener will come just three days after the Desert Stinger with Cal State East Bay in town on Feb. 7. Academy of Art then spends the day in Turlock on Feb. 10 for a matchup with Cal State Stanislaus before returning to Mission Blue Field the very next day, Feb. 11, to host Saint Martin's. ART U will get a week off from competition after that busy first nine days then plays Cal State Monterey Bay in Seaside on Feb. 18. A total of 43 wins (30 in conference) pushed the Otters to a California Collegiate Athletic Association regular season title and the 2016 NCAA West Regional, but no further following losses to Western Washington and Sonoma State.

"We enjoy hosting teams, especially from out of state," said Garnett. "It gives them an opportunity to see San Francisco and it gives our athletes a look at different competition. Playing the CCAA teams is always an exciting challenge. We know we have to prepare well for those games and expect to see many of those teams make postseason this year."

Feb. 24 brings the start of Pacific West play and Dominican serves as the Knights' first conference opponent. Continuing a bit of a round robin of the PacWest's Bay Area pod, ART U next visits Holy Names on Mar. 3 then is back in its home of Brisbane to welcome a Notre Dame de Namur team against whom Academy of Art is virtually even in 35 historical meetings.
 
From a team they have faced more than any other to one they will play for the first time, the Knights host Pace University out of the Northeast 10. The Setters were an even 11-11 in conference last season and reached the NE10 Tournament as a result.

Azusa Pacific, ART U's Mar. 14 opponent, finished third in the PacWest standings last year, but still won 32 games overall. After the Cougars, Academy of Art remains on the road, entering another first-time matchup with new conference member Biola on Mar. 15 in La Mirada. The Eagles were one win under .500 in their final year as part of the Golden State Athletic Conference. That Southern California roadtrip concludes on Mar. 17 with Concordia who ended up fourth in the PacWest behind APU in 2016.

Coming off a fifth-place finish in the nation last season, Humboldt State will be up next for ART U on Mar. 19. In 2016, the Lumberjacks won 44 games and made their fifth consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament. They would have faced Academy of Art during the regular season while carrying the title of No. 1 in NCAA Division II, but inclement weather prevented the games. The Knights' sixth straight appearance in the Tournament of Champions (Mar. 23-25) follows its road matchup with HSU. Contests in the TOC are still to be determined.

Two days after ART U returns from the Tournament of Champions, they will host resume PacWest play, hosting Chaminade for four games over two days (Mar. 27-28). Road rematches then follow with NDNU (Apr. 7) and Dominican (Apr. 14) as the months change and two more Hawaii opponents make stops in Brisbane thereafter. Hawaii Pacific, fifth in the conference standings a season ago, will play a four-game series with Academy of Art (Apr. 21-22) and UH Hilo then meets the Knights for a pair (Apr. 24).

ART U's longest stretch at home (eight games) finishes with Senior Day against Holy Names on Apr. 29. Competing in May for the third time in program history, Academy of Art heads out on its final roadtrip of the regular season to defending PacWest regular season champion California Baptist (May 3) then to Dixie State (May 5). Both the Lancers and Trailblazers made NCAA Tournament appearances in 2016, falling to Humboldt State along the way in the West Regional.

"The PacWest had a very strong year last year," said Garnett. "2018 will be the last year for Dixie State and CBU and I expect we will see those programs looking to leave a legacy. The competition overall continues to improve and I look forward to seeing our program compete in the PacWest this year."