The Rockhurst Hawks' season opener against the Washburn Ichabods has been moved to Wednesday (Feb. 25) at 2 pm due to wet field conditions and snow still on the warning track.  The temperature at 2 pm on Tuesday was predicted to be 38°F.  By pushing the game back one day, the expected temperature at 2 pm on Wednesday is predicted to be 48°F.
 
Washburn University is located in Topeka, Kan.  The Ichabods (8-0) are currently undefeated this season.  They are coming off a four-game sweep against MIAA conference opponent Southwest Baptist University.  Washburn is off to a very hot start as eight players are hitting above .300.
 
First year head coach Harley Douglas will lead the Ichabods in the 2015 season. Douglas was an assistant with the Ichabods for three years before he was named interim coach after the death of 35-year head coach Steve Anson following the 2014 season.  Washburn finished with a 26-24 overall record and 22-28 record in the MIAA.  They entered the MIAA Championship Tournament at the seventh seed and lost in the first round to the eventual MIAA champions, Emporia State University.
 
The Hawks have yet to play a game in the 2015 season.  They are looking to start strong after a down 2014 campaign.  Rockhurst finished 17-31 overall and had a 15-20 conference record in the GLVC.  They barely missed the cut to continue on to the GLVC Championship Tournament.
 
An upside for the Hawks is they are returning a lot of experience.  Seven of the nine starters return in the field.  On the pitching side, the Hawks return four players with a sub 4.0 ERA.
 
Gary Burns enters his 22 seasons as head coach of the Hawks.  Through his 21 years at Rockhurst, he has compiled a record of 640-470.  Burns has led the Hawks to 14 post-season appearances, including six berths in the NCAA Division II Regional Tournament.
 
After the season opener against Washburn, the Hawks will travel to Nashville, Tenn., where they will play both the University of Illinois Springfield and Tiffin University out of Ohio.
 
The Washburn-Hawks game will be a broadcasted live on the All-Access Hawks Network.  It will be an audio-only broadcast.  The Hawks pregame show will start at 1:45 pm and follow with the live action at 2 pm.  Listen live here.