University of Tennessee Athletics
Baseball Vols Open Season at Minute Maid Classic
February 09, 2005 | Baseball
Feb. 9, 2005
The Tennessee baseball team departs for Houston Thursday as the Volunteers are set to open the season at the 2005 Minute Maid College Classic. Tennessee is slated to face Texas A&M (Fri., 7 p.m. CT), Baylor (Sat., 3:30 p.m. CT) and Oklahoma State (Sun., 11 a.m. CT) in the three-day event, which takes place at the Houston Astros' Minute Maid Park.
"This weekend's games will serve as a really good test for this team," UT head coach Rod Delmonico said. "We're going to see some highly-ranked teams, all of which have very solid pitching. I'm eager to see our guys in a game situation, and they're excited to play in a big-league ballpark."
The Vols open their 96th season of competition -- and the 16th under Delmonico -- against Texas A&M Friday. The contest marks the first-ever meeting between the two programs. The Aggies are ranked No. 9 in the most recent Sports Weekly/ESPN poll, No. 10 in the Collegiate Baseball listings and No. 13 in the Baseball America rankings.
Tennessee's all-time record in season-openers is 62-31-2, including a 12-3 mark in Delmonico's tenure.
Tennessee squares off against Baylor Saturday in what will also be a first-time meeting. The Bears garnered the No. 10 spot in the Baseball America poll and are picked by the publication to finish second in the Big 12 this season.
Oklahoma State awaits Tennessee Sunday afternoon. The Vols lead the all-time series with the Cowboys 3-1. Oklahoma State, which opened the season with a series sweep of Arkansas-Pine Bluff last weekend, occupies the No. 23 spot in both the Baseball America and Collegiate Baseball polls.
Tennessee boasts a 5-3 all-time record against current members of the Big 12 Conference (2-1 vs. Kansas; 0-1 vs. Oklahoma; 3-1 vs. Oklahoma State). The Vols were ranked No. 34 in the Baseball America preseason rankings and No. 40 in the Collegiate Baseball preseason poll.
