DELAND, Fla. – After multiple extra-inning games, rain delays and upsets, the No. 1 seed Central Arkansas softball team finally knows who its opponent is for tomorrow's quarterfinal game in the ASUN Championships. With the close of the final game on Wednesday, the No. 5 seed North Alabama pulled off the upset to earn a game against the regular season champs, with first pitch on Thursday at 11:30 a.m. CT.
 
After finishing the regular season with a 39-9 overall record and a 22-2 run in ASUN play, the Bears open championship play against one of the two teams to steal a game during the regular season in North Alabama. Central Arkansas closed out the regular season with three run-rule wins over Lipscomb, getting bats hot and keeping pitch counts low for a postseason run. The Bears outscored the Bisons 32-1 over three games, batting .506 as a team and recording a 0.00 ERA.
 
The regular season series against North Alabama was a little different, however, with the Bears going 2-1 against the Lions. Taking games one and three by multiple runs, the offense in game two just couldn't generate quite enough, falling 3-2 in the middle of the series. Tremere Harris was terrific across the three games, batting .600 with a couple of doubles and four RBI. Morgan Nelson added two home runs, but the team only hit .261, which was still higher than the .216 that the Bear pitchers allowed. Jordan Johnson, this season's ASUN Pitcher of the Year, picked up two wins on the weekend, allowing a 1.50 ERA with eight strikeouts.
 
Central Arkansas earned a significant number of all-conference accolades and honors, placing nine student-athletes on all-conference teams and picking up three superlatives. Head coach Jenny Parsons was named the conference's coach of the year, Johnson was the league's top pitcher, and Madi Young was named the ASUN Defensive Player of the Year.
 
Last season's ASUN Championship saw the Bears bow out in the semifinals, having defeated the Lions and Kennesaw State, but falling to North Florida twice.
 
North Alabama ended the regular season 32-14-1 with a 12-11-1 conference record. After closing the regular season taking two of three against Stetson, the Lions earned the No. 5 seed in the tournament. This meant that in order to make it to the double-elimination portion of the tournament, North Alabama had to win a play-in game against Jacksonville, which the Lions did with a 5-4 score in ten innings on Wednesday. Then today, North Alabama played again to earn a spot in tomorrow's quarterfinal against the Bears, defeating Florida Gulf Coast 6-5. The Lions held off a three-run seventh inning by the Eagles to squeak out the win, earning a third game in three days.
 
The Lions put down ten hits, including multiple hits from three players. Both teams used three pitchers, with starter Maci Birdyshaw throwing four innings. FGCU came inches from tying the game with two outs in the bottom of the seventh, stretching an RBI single and sending a final runner home, who was tagged out before reaching safely.
 
Central Arkansas and North Alabama battle for the fourth time this season tomorrow at 11:30 a.m. CT. The game will be on ESPN+, with live stats available here. Fans can buy tickets at the conference tournament's ticket site.