CONWAY, Ark. – Central Arkansas softball is set to host its second to last ASUN series at Natalie Shock Stadium on Friday and Saturday, as the Bears welcome Lipscomb to Conway. Friday's doubleheader is set for 3 p.m., followed by a 1 p.m. start time on Saturday.
The Bears (20-24, 8-6 ASUN) last faced off with No. 10 Arkansas on Tuesday, falling 7-0 to the nationally ranked Razorbacks. And despite the loss, the Bears made Arkansas work for every run, holding the Razorbacks to three or fewer runs in each scoring inning.
Kylie Griffin had two hits in the game, boosting her batting average to .391 on the year.
As the season comes closer to an end, the Bears are 8-6 in conference games with three series left. Freshman
Kaitlyn Graham leads the team in those games with a .439 batting average and 14 RBI.
Emma Robertson leads all ASUN hitters with four home runs in conference games, despite only recently coming into a starting role. The duo of Griffin and fellow senior
Madi Young continue to be extremely difficult to strike out, as the two have combined for 34 hits and 22 walks with only four strikeouts in over 110 combined plate appearances.
All-time, the Bears are 8-1 against Lipscomb, having won seven-straight. Last season, the Bears went to Nashville and outscored the Bisons 30-1 in three games, scoring a dozen or more twice in the series. The Bears have only allowed Lipscomb to score multiple runs in a game twice, both in the first series meeting in 2022.
Lipscomb enters the weekend 20-23 overall and 7-8 in conference games. Over the last week, the Bisons dropped two of three to Eastern Kentucky over the weekend, and went to Chattanooga on Tuesday, falling 2-1 after giving up two runs in the first four innings. Brenna Sherman hit a solo home run in the seventh, but the Bisons lineup behind her couldn't add a tying run.
The Bisons have had one superstar at the plate in Alyssa Hastings, who is hitting .409 on the year. She is the only player on her team hitting over .300, and she leads her team in total hits by nearly 20. She also has 18 doubles and seven home runs, adding 25 RBI and 20 walks. In conference games, she's hitting .489 with 22 hits, drawing ten walks for an on base percentage of .582.
First pitch on Friday is set for 3 p.m., with game two following the first game. Saturday's game is set for a 1 p.m. start. All three games will be on ESPN+, and live stats will be available for all three games as well.
