Virginia To Face Maryland, Minnesota In ACC/Big 10 Softball Challenge

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Virginia will face Maryland and Minnesota in the sixth ACC/Big 10 Softball Challenge the leagues announced on Tuesday (June 28) with the release of the matchups for the event. It is Virginia’s first appearance in the event.

The Cavaliers will face the Terrapins and Gophers as part of a four-team pod hosted by North Carolina the weekend of February 16-19, 2023. Games will be played at four campus sites with the ACC hosting this season, while head-to-head games played between select teams participating in the 2023 Tax Act Clearwater Invitational will also count in the challenge.

Florida State, Virginia Tech and Duke will represent the ACC in the 2023 TaxAct Clearwater Invitational, while Indiana, Michigan and Nebraska will be the Big Ten contingent in the tournament. Clemson, Georgia Tech, North Carolina and NC State are the host sites for the games played on campuses.

The ACC owns a 3-2 lead on the Big Ten during the first five years of the Challenge. The ACC won the Challenge in 2017, 2018 and 2020, with the Big Ten claiming the title in 2016 and 2019.

The ACC and Big Ten offices collaborate to determine the schedule each season, as the event returns for the first time since the 2020 season. In addition, the official title of the Challenge rotates each year. The 2023 event will be referred to as the ACC/Big Ten Softball Challenge and will continue to mirror the official title of the conferences’ Challenge agreements for men’s basketball, women’s basketball and volleyball.

Exact game dates and times, as well as television and online coverage, will be announced at a later date.

2023 ACC/Big Ten Softball Challenge
(all games to be played Feb. 16-19, 2023)

Clearwater, Fla. (TaxAct Clearwater Invitational)
(results between ACC and Big Ten schools will count towards Challenge standings)
ACC – Duke, Florida State, Virginia Tech
Big Ten – Indiana, Michigan, Nebraska

Atlanta, Ga. (host – Georgia Tech)
ACC – Georgia Tech, Louisville
Big Ten – Illinois, Wisconsin

Chapel Hill, N.C. (host – North Carolina)
ACC – North Carolina, Virginia
Big Ten – Maryland, Minnesota

Clemson, S.C. (host – Clemson)
ACC – Clemson, Notre Dame
Big Ten – Northwestern, Ohio State

Raleigh, N.C. (host – NC State)
ACC – NC State, Syracuse
Big Ten – Iowa, Purdue