FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — University of Arkansas head coach Courtney Deifel has released the complete schedule for the 2023 softball season. The back-to-back SEC champions are slated to play 55 total games in the regular season with 30 being played at home inside Bogle Park.
The Hogs open their 2023 season at a tournament hosted by UNLV on Feb. 10-12. In its first matchup of 2023, Arkansas will play Weber State at 4 p.m. Feb. 10. The Razorbacks round out opening weekend with four more games against UNLV, Weber State, Southern Utah and Baylor. Following opening weekend in Las Vegas, Arkansas travels to Clearwater, Fla., Feb. 17-19 for the prestigious TaxAct Clearwater Invitational. The Razorbacks will play five games against strong competition (Florida State, Duke, Louisiana, Indiana and Nebraska), including four games against teams that made the 2022 NCAA Tournament.
The Razorbacks commence a three-week home stretch with the Razorback Invitational Feb. 23-26. Arkansas will face Arizona, a 2022 Women’s College World Series participant, in a home-opening doubleheader at 3 p.m. Feb. 23. Arkansas rounds out the tournament playing Drake and Illinois State twice. Arkansas will host and play six games at the Wooo Pig Classic (March 2-5) with Iowa State, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and North Texas making up the tournament field. The Hogs will play each team twice.
Following the Wooo Pig Classic, Arkansas welcomes Central Arkansas March 6 for a home-and-home midweek series.
Diving into league play, the defending SEC regular season and tournament champions will host home series against Texas A&M (March 10-12), Florida (March 24-26), Georgia (April 6-8) and Tennessee (April 29-May 1).
After opening conference play against Texas A&M, the Razorbacks travel to Kansas for a midweek matchup against Wichita State (March 14). Arkansas embarks on its first road series at Alabama (March 18-20). The Razorbacks hit the road to Mississippi State (March 31-April 2) before returning home to host Georgia (April 6-8).
Arkansas will complete its midweek home-and-home series versus Central Arkansas April 11 in Conway.
UAB comes to Fayetteville for a three-game series April 14-16. After dueling the Dragons, Texas A&M Commerce treks to Bogle for a midweek doubleheader on April 18.
The Hogs head to the Bluegrass State April 21-24 for four games. Arkansas tussles with Kentucky for a three-game series April 21-23 before sliding over to Bowling Green April 24 for a Monday night matchup against Western Kentucky.
Arkansas hosts Tennessee April 29-May 1 and concludes the regular season at Missouri May 5-7.
For the second time in history, the SEC Softball Tournament will be held inside Bogle Park. The Razorbacks will host the 2023 SEC Tournament May 9-13.
Arkansas is scheduled to play 35 games against teams that qualified for the NCAA Tournament last year. Remaining game times and television assignments will be announced at a later date.
Last season, head coach Courtney Deifel guided Arkansas to its most successful season in school history, winning a program-record 48 games and clinching the program’s first outright SEC crown and SEC Tournament title.