UTEP announces 2023 softball schedule
EL PASO, Texas - The 2023 UTEP softball schedule was unveiled by head coach T.J. Hubbard on Friday.
The Miners will play 47 games this season, including 24 versus Conference USA competition.
Highlighting the schedule are three matchups versus Power 5 opponents and five games against regional rivals NM State and New Mexico.
“For the third straight year, we are fortunate to host multiple tournaments in February at our beautiful Helen of Troy Complex," Hubbard said. "I am especially proud to announce the naming of the first tournament after Dr. Diana Natalicio. She was such an integral part of this University, UTEP Athletics and our softball program – we will be forever grateful for her leadership and dedication.
"This ’23 schedule features a balance of early challenges and solid competition that will prepare our group for a tough C-USA slate," Hubbard added.
The Miners will play a total of 24 games at the Helen of Troy Softball Complex across 20 dates and will host two tournaments.
The venue will be the site of the inaugural Dr. Diana Natalicio Memorial Tournament Presented by Holiday Inn West-Sunland Park Feb. 16-19.
The tournament will be played in honor of UTEP’s esteemed former President who passed away in 2021.
The UTEP Invitational Presented by Holiday Inn West-Sunland Park will be played Feb. 24-26.
Joining UTEP in the Dr. Diana Natalicio Memorial Tournament field will be Buffalo, New Mexico, Santa Clara and Texas Tech.
The UTEP Invitational field will be composed of the Miners, CSU Bakersfield, Creighton, Kansas City and Oklahoma State.
The Miners will launch the season when they participate in the Wildcat Invitational in Abilene, Texas Feb. 10-12.
Participating teams include Abilene Christian, Murray State and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
After hosting back-to-back tournaments, UTEP will face off against New Mexico in a doubleheader on March 1 in Albuquerque.
The Battle of I-10 will be renewed on three separate occasions.
The Miners will take on NM State along with Northern Colorado on March 4-5 in Las Cruces.
UTEP will also go head-to-head with the Aggies on April 11 in El Paso.
The Conference USA slate opens with a series at UTSA March 10-12.
The Miners’ first home series of the league slate is March 17-19 versus WKU.
UTEP will also conclude the C-USA schedule at home against FIU May 5-7.
The Miners will also host North Texas (April 6-8) and LA Tech (April 21-23) in league play, and play at Charlotte (March 24-26), Florida Atlantic (April 14-16) and UAB (April 28-30).
UTEP’s longest homestand of the season is 11 games spread across two tournaments from Feb. 18-26.
Three teams that participated in the 2022 NCAA Tournament line UTEP’s schedule – Murray State (Feb. 12), Oklahoma State (Feb. 26) and North Texas (April 6-8).
The 2023 Conference USA tournament will be held on May 10-13 in Ruston, La.
See the full schedule here.
The Miners finished 15-34 (5-19 Conference USA) last season.
Wildcat Invitational Participants
Abilene Christian (host)
Murray State
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
Dr. Diana Natalicio Memorial Tournament Participants
Buffalo
New Mexico
Santa Clara
Texas Tech
UTEP Invitational Participants
Creighton
CSU-Bakersfield
Kansas City
Oklahoma State
Tarleton State
