Two of the Hornets' final three WAC series will be at home as they host league co-champion Abilene Christian (May 1 to May 3) and Tarleton State (May 14 to May 16), while facing UC Davis (May 5) in a single game on the road prior to a trip to Riverside to take on another future Big West rival in California Baptist (May 8 to May 10). Photo courtesy of Sacramento State Athletics

SACRAMENTO, CA (MPG) - Fresh off its third Western Athletic Conference regular season title and its sixth conference crown overall, the Sacramento State baseball team looks to carry the momentum of that successful campaign into a 2026 season that features a star-studded 56-game schedule, according to head coach Reggie Christiansen.

"Our players and staff are excited about this year's schedule which may very well be the toughest non-conference schedule in the nation," Christiansen said on Oct. 21. "It will give our program the opportunity to compete on the road against some of the best teams in the nation, like reigning NCAA national champion LSU and UCLA, which is likely to be among the top-ranked programs in the country once the season begins, as well as a trip to Omaha to take on Creighton at Charles Schwab Field (home of the Men's College World Series).

"That being said, I think what I am most excited about is the home schedule for our boosters and our fans,” Christiansen said. “The opportunity to host games against programs like UC Irvine, California, UConn and Winthrop early on is exciting and we are looking forward to treating our fans to some exciting weekends of baseball."

The Hornets' non-conference schedule features six opponents that finished in the top 50 in the final 2025 RPI, four of which ranked among the top 25 at season's end. Seven of Sacramento State's opponents for 2026 were NCAA Tournament qualifiers UC Irvine, Fresno State, LSU, Kansas, Creighton, UCLA and WAC rival Utah Valley, while the aforementioned Tigers and Bruins both reached the College World Series.

In addition, the Hornets will face six schools that either won or shared their respective conference's regular season title: Creighton and UConn in the Big East, Nevada in the Mountain West, Abilene Christian in the WAC, UC Irvine in the Big West, and UCLA in the Big Ten.

Meanwhile, three conference tournament champions also dot the Sacramento State slate in Big East champion Creighton, Mountain West champion Fresno State and WAC champion Utah Valley.

A three-game series against UC Irvine kicks off the season from Feb. 13 to Feb. 15 as the Hornets play eight of their first 10 contests within the friendly confines of John Smith Field. It will be the first meeting between the two California powers since 2020 and will give fans a sneak preview of a future conference rival as Sacramento State will join the Big West Conference, beginning with the 2027 campaign.

The Hornets' non-conference schedule features six opponents that finished in the top 50 in the final 2025 RPI, four of which ranked among the top 25 at season's end. Seven of Sacramento State's opponents for 2026 were NCAA Tournament qualifiers UC Irvine, Fresno State, LSU, Kansas, Creighton, UCLA and WAC rival Utah Valley, while the aforementioned Tigers and Bruins both reached the College World Series. Photo courtesy of Sacramento State Athletics

The inaugural meeting with Saint Joseph's follows from Feb. 19 to Feb. 22 with a four-game series, followed by a mid-week road contest at Pacific on Feb. 24. A three-game home-and-home series against California is next as games one and three in the series will be played in Berkeley with the Hornets playing host for game two on Feb. 28.

Following a midweek trip to Fresno State on March 3, Sacramento State makes its second-ever trip to Baton Rouge to take on LSU from March 6 to March 8. The two programs first met in a three-game series in 2016, with the Hornets winning the middle game of that weekend with the No. 5-ranked Tigers by a 5-4 score, thanks to a pair of ninth-inning RBIs from Matt Smith and Vinny Esposito and six shutout innings by the bullpen.

Sacramento State returns home to host eight of its next nine, welcoming UMass Lowell (March 10) and Pacific (March 11) for single games before UConn heads west for a three-game series from March 13 to March 15. The Hornets face San Francisco (March 17) in a midweek match-up before playing host to Winthrop out of the Big South from March 19 to March 21.

A week-long trip to the Midwest has Sacramento State taking on Kansas in a pair of midweek contests from March 24 to March 25 before heading to Omaha to face Creighton at the home of the College World Series from March 27 to March 29. 

Upon returning home to face Nevada in the team's final non-conference tune-up, the Hornets open WAC play on the road at Utah Tech (April 2-4), then sandwiches midweek contests against Fresno State (April 7) and San Francisco (April 14) around a three-game league series against future Big West rival Utah Valley, which upset No. 12 national seed Oregon in its NCAA Regional opener last season, on April 10-12.

The gauntlet continues with eight consecutive games on the road as Sacramento State travels to Texas for a three-game conference series with UT Arlington (April 17-19) and faces Causeway rival UC Davis (April 21) and Nevada (April 28) around a trip to Los Angeles to take on UCLA (April 24-26).

Two of the Hornets' final three WAC series will be at home as they host league co-champion Abilene Christian (May 1-3) and Tarleton State (May 14-16), while facing UC Davis (May 5) in a single game on the road prior to a trip to Riverside to take on another future Big West rival in California Baptist (May 8-10).

"When all is said and done, I believe this schedule will set us up for what is a yearly battle once WAC play begins in April," Christiansen said. "With only 18 conference games this year, our non-conference slate will undoubtedly prepare us for success once league rolls around."