CONWAY, Ark. – Central Arkansas softball plays its home opener on Wednesday, welcoming Northern Iowa to Natalie Shock Stadium for the first game of the 2026 season in Conway. The Bears and Panthers will throw first pitch at 2 p.m.
The Bears (5-4) play their first game at home after playing two tournaments away from home already this season. This past weekend, Central Arkansas played a tough first two games at Troy's Cardinal Classic before rebounding for two excellent responses on Saturday. After dropping the first two outings of the weekend and scoring a combined one run, the Bears played two games on Saturday that saw the offense explode, combining for 20 runs over the final two games.
Nine games into the season, newcomer
Trinity Brandon has been the hot bat so far, hitting .400 on 30 at bats. She is one of two Bears with double-digit hits this season, her 12 base knocks leading the way with
Addie Graham's 10 just behind her. Brandon also leads the squad with five doubles, one of three Bears with multiple doubles this year. Additionally,
Emma Robertson leads the squad with three home runs, and Graham and
Renee Christian both have a team-high six steals.
In the circle, freshman
Jaleigh White has gotten off to a good start to her career in Purple and Gray, with two wins in two starts. In 11.1 innings, the Kansas native has recorded eight strikeouts while allowing only two earned runs, tallying a 1.24 ERA.
Northern Iowa (2-3) opened its season at home last weekend, earning two runs in a weekend that saw only two games decided by more than two runs. The Panthers earned wins over Kansas City and Butler, including a 15-11 win over the Bulldogs. UNI had three players bat over .500 over the weekend, in Sykora Smith (.588), Kate Lappe (.533) and Skylar Benesh (.529). The trio combined for 27 hits, six doubles and six home runs. In the circle, Morgan Vertz has yet to give up an earned run in 7.2 innings of work, earning a win against Butler.
Northern Iowa was voted to finish second in the Preseason Missouri Valley Conference poll, and had five players selected to the preseason All-MVC team. The Panthers are coming off of a 32-18 record in 2025, with a finish in the MVC Tournament semifinal.
First pitch against the Panthers is set for 2 p.m. at Natalie Shock Stadium. The game will have live stats available online.
