After a season that ended one win shy of a conference title and a chance at an NCAA Div. I regional tournament berth, the Wildcats are preparing for another long season.

Head Coach Rick McCarty said that although the season came back around quickly, he is excited about what the 2025 team can accomplish.

“It always seems to sneak up on us a little bit,” McCarty said. “I think our roster is in a really good place right now. There’s a lot of support, and the community is buzzing about it.”

McCarty also said he is proud of how the coaching staff has remained intact over the past few years – something he believes brings the team strong cohesion, which will be needed as they start the season with early road tests.

The Wildcats open with four straight road games, notably facing the reigning Big Ten champions, the University of Illinois, to start their season. Although they are the underdogs in this matchup, McCarty remains optimistic.

“I know our guys are excited about it, looking forward to playing down in Corpus Christi,” McCarty said. “That’s what they’re here for. They want to play outside competition. We want to challenge our guys to play good teams.”

The weekend series will consist of three games, held Friday through Sunday at Whataburger Field, a neutral site where the Double-A affiliate of the Houston Astros plays.

Following the series, the Wildcats will make a stop at Incarnate Word before playing their first home game against Youngstown State at the newly renovated Crutcher Scott Field.

As for the team’s goals this season, McCarty was clear.

“We’re trying to win the WAC tournament to guarantee our spot in the postseason,” McCarty said. “It’s just an expectation. We want to challenge ourselves to be better every day, and we don’t want to just be known as a good team but as a good program.”

And for McCarty, the Wildcats’ desire to establish themselves as a top-tier program begins this weekend with no distractions but just playing pure, clean baseball.

“We’re not worried about all the other things—it’s just baseball, man,” McCarty said. “When the first pitch is thrown, you’re trying to play cleaner than the other team. If we do that, we’ll have a chance to win three games. If we don’t, we probably won’t. That’s just how the game is played.”