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CONWAY, Ark. _ The University of Central Arkansas Bears are back at the friendly confines for an ASUN Conference series against Austin Peay beginning Friday, the start of an eight-game home stretch at Bear Stadium.

UCA (6-12, 1-2) and APSU (15-7, 2-1) will open their series at 6 p.m. Friday, followed by a 4 p.m. first pitch on Saturday and a 1 p.m. start on Sunday.

The Bears and Governors will be meeting for the eighth time Friday, with APSU leading the series 4-3. The Governors, the ASUN regular-season co-champions last season, are coming off a 2-1 series win over Lipscomb at home in Clarksville, Tenn. The Governors won 7-1 and 17-7 in seven innings before dropping the finale 8-6.

The Governors were picked third in the 2025 preseason poll while UCA was the sixth choice. 

APSU leads the league with a .306 batting average, along with 51 doubles and 38 home runs, also both tops in the ASUN. A year ago, the Governors ranked first in the nation in average (.359), home runs per game (2.6), slugging percentage (.661), on-base percentage (.455) and scoring (10.9).

UCA has one player, senior Bryce Cermenelli, with the top batting average of any player in this series. Cermenelli, a junior third baseman from Norco, Calif., ranks third in the ASUN with a .403 average. The Bears have three more players above the .300 mark, including senior Preston Curtis (.311), freshman Nathan Negre (.310) and sophomore Zeb Allen (.304).

UCA dropped a pair of one-run, 10-inning games last weekend against North Alabama in its opening ASUN series on the road, and won 6-3 in the middle game of the weekend.

The ASUN is set up in divisions this season, with all six teams playing home-and-home series with the other five teams on their side. UCA's Gold Division includes UNA, APSU Lipscomb, Bellarmine and Eastern Kentucky.