Southland reveals scheduling process for Isles
School's full membership in conference commences next season with volleyball
By Lee Goddard Caller-Times
February 3, 2006
The first taste of new conference competition should come on Sept. 22 for Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
That is scheduled to be opening night for Southland Conference volleyball competition, giving the Islanders their first match as a full-fledged conference member, and not just a fill-in-the-gap affiliate.
Southland commissioner Tom Burnett said the dates and divisions have been set for all sports. Volleyball will play a Friday-Saturday schedule starting Sept. 22. Basketball will tip its season Jan. 4 - though some games could be shuffled to Jan. 3 due to schedule conflicts - and go with a Thursday-Saturday rotation.
Baseball will open March 16 and play three-game weekend series, and softball's first pitch is scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 27, though the sport will primarily be held on weekends after that.
Next season will mark the first for A&M-Corpus Christi as a full conference member, though the Islanders have had associations with the Southland in men's tennis and the Big South in softball. Now, every sport will have a shot at a conference title.
Some Southland sports - men's and women's basketball, volleyball and baseball - will have divisions. With both Stephen F. Austin and Lamar wishing to play Texas teams in the West Division, Burnett said a compromise had to be struck.
Joining A&M-Corpus Christi in the west are Sam Houston State, Texas-Arlington, Texas-San Antonio, Texas State and, for the next two seasons, Stephen F. Austin. Southland newcomer Central Arkansas, McNeese State, Nicholls State, Northwestern (La.) State, Southeastern Louisiana and, for the next two seasons, Lamar will comprise the east.
Lamar and Stephen F. Austin will rotate divisions every two seasons. So, when the conference presidents met last week, they went with what they believed was the best way to keep both schools content.
"Playing west is important to both schools," Burnett said. "In the end, to avoid having one permanently play east, the two-year system was approved. It's to give both sides a chance to play west. We'll see how it works."
Baseball will have a three-game series against every team in its division, and face five of the six teams in the other division. Basketball will play home-and-home series against its division and one game against each team from the other.
Lamar does not field softball, meaning there will be an 11-team setup. The plan is to play every other team in one three-game series.
With the exception of basketball, Burnett said all conference games have been finalized as to what teams will be meeting during a given time frame. The only wait before releasing the schedules is to give schools time to adjust for conflicts.
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