UNVIERSITY PARK, Pa. — BTN will televise more field hockey this season than ever before, with at least 15 matches set to air on BTN, including for the first time each round of the Big Ten Field Hockey Tournament. Each BTN broadcast will also be available on BTN2Go.
The field hockey season on BTN begins on Friday, Sept. 21, when defending Big Ten Tournament Champion Penn State hosts Indiana. BTN’s live coverage of field hockey includes a game every Friday, culminating with the Big Ten Tournament final on Sunday, Nov. 4.
The Nittany Lions will open the 2012 regular season the weekend of August 24 when they host Old Dominion on Friday and Virginia on Sunday. With 11 home contests in their 18-game schedule, Penn State hopes to pack the stands at the Field Hockey Complex after winning their first Big Ten Championship since 1998 and advancing to the NCAA tournament last season.
The Big Ten enjoyed a successful 2011 field hockey season highlighted by four teams earning bids to the NCAA Field Hockey Championship, marking the 11th-straight season the conference has sent three or more teams to the national tournament. Penn State earned the conference’s automatic berth after winning the Big Ten Tournament, joining Iowa, Big Ten Champion Michigan and Ohio State in the 16-team field.
Below is the schedule of matches scheduled for both BTN and BTN2Go. Additional matches will be scheduled during the season for delayed broadcast as part of the network’s Student U initiative.
2012 Field Hockey Television Schedule (All Times Eastern)
DATE TIME MATCHUP AIRING
Friday, September 21 3:00 p.m. Indiana at Penn State LIVE
Friday, September 28 3:00 p.m. Penn State at Northwestern LIVE
Friday, October 5 3:00 p.m. Iowa at Indiana LIVE
Friday, October 12 3:00 p.m. Michigan State at Michigan LIVE
Friday, October 19 3:00 p.m. Penn State at Ohio State LIVE
Friday, October 26 3:00 p.m. Michigan at Iowa LIVE
Friday, November 2 2:30 p.m. Big Ten Tournament: Semifinal #1 LIVE*
Friday, November 2 5:00 p.m. Big Ten Tournament: Semifinal #2 LIVE*
Sunday, November 4 2:30 p.m. Big Ten Tournament Final LIVE*
*Big Ten Tournament at Iowa
The Big Ten Network is available to more than 80 million homes through agreements with more than 300 cable, satellite and telco providers in all 50 states and Canada. Armstrong, Blue Ridge and Adams Cable, though, do not carry BTN in Pennsylvania and the Medina and Youngstown, Ohio areas. More than 35,000 Penn State alumni live in the communities served by the three cable providers in Pennsylvania and Ohio, in addition to thousands more fans and current Penn State students. Armstrong, Blue Ridge and Adams Cable customers missed more than 110 Penn State events on BTN during the 2011-12 academic year, in addition to coverage from 15 conference championships.
About BTN: A joint venture between the Big Ten Conference and Fox Networks, BTN is the first internationally distributed network dedicated to covering one of the premier collegiate conferences in the country. With more than 800 events, all in HD, the 24/7 network is the ultimate destination for Big Ten fans and alumni across the country, allowing them to see their favorite teams, regardless of where they live. Events include football, men’s and women’s basketball games; dozens of Big Ten Championship events; studio shows; coaches’ shows; and classic games. The network televises and streams more Olympic sporting events and women’s sports than has ever been aired on any other network. Original programming highlights activities and accomplishments of some of the nation’s finest universities. The groundbreaking Student U initiative provides real-world experience for students interested in careers in sports television. The network is available to more than 80 million homes across the United States and Canada, and currently has agreements with more than 300 affiliates, including AT&T U-Verse, Atlantic Broadband, Cablevision, Charter, Comcast, Cox, DirecTV, DISH Network, Insight, Mediacom, Rogers Cable (Canada), Shaw Cable and Shaw Direct (Canada), Time Warner Cable and Verizon FiOS. For additional information, go to www.BTN.com.