ABILENE – Abilene Christian begins its 2024 baseball season this weekend with a four-game home set against Northern Illinois.
The fresh rivalry launches with a 2:05 p.m. doubleheader on Friday, followed by single games at 3:05 p.m. on Saturday and 12:05 p.m. on Sunday.
The Wildcats are coming off a 35-24 season and look to keep their streak of 30-win seasons moving forward.
"We have averaged 34 wins a year over the last three years, so we want to continue to build on past momentum and take another step forward as a program," said ACU Head Coach
Rick McCarty. "We feel like we have the talent to compete for a WAC championship, so I'm looking forward to seeing how both the experienced and inexperienced guys mature and grow between now and Mesa."
The Wildcats will use the series this weekend to get a better understanding of strengths and weaknesses and to solidify the lineup.
NIU was 10-43 a season ago and returns its best hitter, Colin Summerhill, who hit .308 with 11 home runs and 54 RBIs last season. The Huskies are under new management with Ryan Copeland moving into the head coaching role from Illinois-Springfield.
After this weekend's series, the Wildcats play Oklahoma State at Globe Life Field on Wednesday before returning to Crutcher Scott Field for a four-game set with Penn on Feb. 23-25.
