Loaded home slate set for C-N in 2024
With just 41 days until the baseball season, Carson-Newman baseball coach Tom Griffin has released his team’s slate for the upcoming 2024 season.
2024 Carson-Newman Baseball Schedule
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – With just 41 days until the baseball season, Carson-Newman baseball coach Tom Griffin has released his team's slate for the upcoming 2024 season.
The Eagles are set to play 33 of their 53 games at home this season, with 18 of them coming in the first 20 games of the season. Under Griffin, C-N has never played more than 29 home games in a single season. Carson-Newman's only two road games in the first month of the season are against Tusculum on Feb. 13 and Lee on Feb. 20. The group won't play a game outside the state of Tennessee until a trip to Shorter on Mar. 5.
"You have to win more games at home than you do on the road," Carson-Newman head baseball coach Tom Griffin said. "To have that many home games at a place we are comfortable with is a huge advantage. Playing at home, we still have to play the games and they are some very good teams that are coming in. King, who we play every year, always has a great group, Shippensburg coming down, Newberry in a conference series, Cedarville coming down who we've played before. Some familiarity there, I do know they are all well-coached. That's one thing when you schedule, you want good competition and good people and who we are playing are good people. You know what to expect from their clubs."
The home-heavy February sees Shippensburg come to town to square off with C-N for the first time ever in a three-game series Feb 9-10. The following weekend, the Eagles welcome Cedarville back to the Silver Diamond Baseball Complex for first time since 2015.
"When you can add some new people, I think its good for us," Griffin said. "It worked out where we were looking for some games, mid-week and when you know some people, that's how all of that works out."
Conference play begins at the end of February, as C-N hosts the defending South Atlantic Conference champion Newberry Wolves Feb 23-24. The conference slate sees C-N hit the road in March for seven games in a eight-game stretch from Mar 5 to Mar 16, followed up with seven straight at home. The month of March also includes a three-game SAC series with Catawba, who makes its first trip to the SDBC since 2018. The Eagles will face the top seven teams in the standings from 2023.
"This league is so tough because of the coaches," Griffin said. "Their staffs make each week very competitive. The way they are recruiting, helping their kids become better players, the development of players. That's a testament to our league and what our league has done in postseason play as well. I think we'll be prepared as a team, not just with what we do, but the people we play in return can help prepare you.
Mixed into the conference slate is a pair of midweek games versus Montevallo, a NCAA regional tournament team in 2023. The two programs are slated to meet for the first time since 2010.
On two different occasions, Carson-Newman will hit the road for back-to-back conference series. Those being UVA Wise and Emory & Henry in March and Lincoln Memorial and Wingate in April.
"When you go on the road, there is a mentality you have to deal with," Griffin said. "You know, you're driving on a bus, go stay in a hotel or a midweek game. There is a challenge to it. Once you get on the field, you are hoping the things we've done in training in the fall and what we're going to do in the spring will have us prepared when we get off a bus and how we go about our job.
April begins with four of the first five games at home, one featuring a non-conference battle with Alabama Huntsville on Apr 9. That is followed by the longest stretch of road games, three against Lincoln Memorial and Wingate and one to Young Harris. C-N finishes the regular season with four straight home games.
"I like this schedule," Griffin said. It's going to be challenging, with a lot of good people that I respect. Everybody's fear in coaching is what they are going to do while their home. When they come back, we have 21 days before we open up. We can't get them ready in 21 days. They have five weeks at home to stay ready."
The Eagle Sports Network has coverage of every pitch at the Silver Diamond Baseball Complex all season long, featuring a video stream on FloSports with a subscription. An audio-only stream is available at cneagles.com/live with select road outings available.
