MONTGOMERY, Ala. | The defending Southwestern Athletic Conference Champion Alabama State Lady Hornets softball program, and new head coach Todd Bradley, announced the team's 2020 schedule Wednesday afternoon.
 
The schedule features 23 games at the Barbara Williams Softball Complex, including visits from in-state foes Alabama, Samford and Jacksonville State. Alabama State will also host two tournaments – the Stinger Classic (Feb. 21-23) and the Black & Gold Tournament (Feb. 28-Mar. 1).

On February 7, the season gets underway as the Lady Hornets travel to Hammond, La., to compete in the Lion Classic hosted by Southeastern Louisiana. At the tournament ASU will play UT Martin (Feb. 7, Feb. 8), SLU (Feb. 7), Grambling (Feb. 8) and Buffalo (Feb. 9).
 
Alabama State's first mid-week contest of the season will come February 12 at Mississippi State. The team stays around SEC competition the following weekend, as it heads to the Plainsman Invitational hosted by Auburn (Feb. 14-16).
 
The Lady Hornets then come home to the Barbara Williams Complex for the longest home stand of the season, hosting 12 of the next 13 games. ASU welcomes North Alabama for the home opener on February 20 at 5 p.m. The next day, the Stinger Classic begins with games against South Carolina State (Feb. 21, Feb. 22), Southeast Missouri (Feb. 21) and Grambling (Feb. 23).
 
ASU will make a trip to Athens on February 25 to face-off with Georgia, who finished last season as the 14th-ranked team in the country.


The next weekend will feature the Black & Gold Tournament, when the Lady Hornets welcome Eastern Kentucky (Feb. 28, Feb. 29), Mercer (Feb. 28), Nicholls (Feb. 29) and Southern Miss (March 1). Bama State will face a couple of Conference USA teams in mid-week action that next week, hosting Middle Tennessee State in a doubleheader on March 3 before traveling to Southern Miss on March 4.
 
One of the more exciting weekends of the season will await Alabama State to close the non-conference tournament schedule. The 2020 HBCU Classic will be hosted March 7-8 in New Orleans and will feature ASU games against Southern, Prairie View A&M and two against Grambling. One final tune-up before conference play gets into full swing will come at Jacksonville State on March 10.
 
The Lady Hornets title defense will begin against the team they had to beat to win it all, as Texas Southern pays a visit to Montgomery for the SWAC opener on March 13 and 14. The first league road test will come next at Southern on March 20 and 21.
 
Alabama State has another huge home game on March 25 when Alabama comes to town. The last time the teams met came last May in the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional – the Crimson Tide advanced and ended up finishing just one win away from an appearance in the NCAA Women's College World Series championship series.
 
Alabama State will host back-to-back SWAC series against Jackson State (April 3-4) and Mississippi Valley State (April 9-10), sandwiched around a return trip to Auburn on April 7.
 
After a mid-week doubleheader at Florida A&M on April 15, ASU will wrap up its league slate with trips to face rival Alabama A&M (April 17-18) and Alcorn State (April 24-25). The regular season ends with a pair of in-state matchups against Samford (April 29) and Jacksonville State (April 30).
 
The 2020 SWAC Softball Tournament will be hosted in Gulfport, Miss., at the Gulfport Sportsplex from May 6-9 – the tournament will be in Gulfport in 2020, 2021 and 2022.
 
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