A loaded 2018 schedule awaits LSU Eunice baseball that includes 36 home games as the Bengals will face five opponents that have made appearances in the National Junior College Athletic Association World Series in the last three years.
“Since we play as an independent, it is very important for us to schedule tough opponents each and every year,” LSU Eunice head coach Jeff Willis said. “I like how this schedule allows us to face some of top programs in the country and more importantly, some of the best coaching staffs in the country.”
The Bengals open the season with a three-game series against North Lake College. It is the sixth straight season LSU Eunice has opened the campaign against the Blazers. The series is the first of five consecutive home weekends at Bengal Stadium.
Following the series against North Lake, LSU Eunice will host Southwest Tennessee CC (Feb. 1-3), Northeastern Oklahoma A&M (Feb. 9-11), Coastal Bend College (Feb. 16-17) and Kellogg CC (Feb. 23-25).
It will be Northeastern Oklahoma A&M’s first trip to Eunice.
After a road trip to L.B. Wallace (Mar. 2-3), the Bengals will host a pivotal three-team weekend. 2017 NJCAA Div. II World Series participant Murray State College and 2016 NJCAA Div. II World Series champion Jones County JC will invade Eunice the weekend of Mar. 9-11.
“Those are two of the best programs at our level,” Willis said. “That’s a great time for our players to see what it's going to take later on at the end of the year.”
LSU Eunice will again have split series with Baton Rouge CC (Mar. 16-18, Apr. 13-15), LSU Alexandria (Mar. 28, Apr. 11) Wharton County JC (Apr.2, Apr. 23) and Tyler JC (Apr. 7-8, Apr. 27-28). The Apache have won the NJCAA Div. III National Championship for four consecutive seasons.
LSU Eunice will also head to the home of the reigning Div. I NJCAA champions, Chipola College.
The May 5-6 tournament will feature some of the best schools in the southeast and a great primer for Regional and World Series play.
“The weekend at Chipola College will be a great barometer for us with it so close to the postseason,” Willis said. “We’ll put in motion a lot of the rotations and game plans for the playoffs around that time of year.
“It should give the guys a great preview of what is ahead.”
The Bengals will host a pair of newcomers to Eunice later in the year - Weatherford JC (Mar. 29-Mar. 31) and Nunez CC (May 10-11).
Nunez, a Chalmette, La.-based community college, is in its first year of junior college baseball.
For the first time since 2015, LSU Eunice will host the Region 23 tournament.
The winner of the May 16-May 20 double-elimination tournament will advance to the NJCAA Division II World Series in Enid, Oklahoma, the following week.
