SOUTH BEND -- The colder weather didn't stop Silver Hawks fans from lining up for the first day of ticket sales.

"I just love it, it beats going into Chicago to see the Cubs, " said Darlene Ferrari of Benton Harbor.

Many of the fans who lined up say they are also Cubs fans, but with the rising cost of gasoline prices they are planning to enjoy America's favorite pastime for a bargain price.

"I think box seats at Wrigley Field for a prime game is like $80 which is crazy when you can get one here for $7," said Gayle Finney of Mishawaka.

"Its just cheaper to drive 30 minutes than an hour into Chicago," said Georgette Dalton of Elkhart.

That's good news for the Silver Hawks organization as they try to raise attendance numbers. Its been 14 years since the club had its best attendance on record with 258,424 people. The 2007 season ended with 152,182 in attendance.

"We did have a bit of a challenge with the schedule with some snow and rain. We had to cancel six games, but actual attendance increased 10.5 percent," said Amy Hill, Silver Hawks Director of Sales & Marketing.

And that was the first full year with new owner Joe Kernan running the show.

"I became a season ticket holder when Kernan bought the team and I thought I needed to do my part to see if I can't keep this franchise here because once baseball is gone here it's not gonna come back," said Dave Grenert from Lakeville.

The Silver Hawks game opener is an exhibition with Notre Dame's baseball team.

The organization also plan on bringing back the fan favorite Friday night fireworks in the month of May.