CONWAY, Ark. – The Central Arkansas softball team hits the road for the first of two straight weekends on the road, heading out to Louisville, Kentucky to take on Bellarmine in a three-game series. The Bears and Knights will open the series with a noon double header on Saturday, then an 11 a.m. finish Sunday morning.
 
The Bears (25-16, 7-4 ASUN) played their last midweek on Tuesday, dropping a Tuesday matchup at LSU. Central Arkansas had some opportunities early, loading the bases in the third inning, but ultimately couldn't pull through to create some chaos in Baton Rouge.
 
As the season gets into April, Central Arkansas has proven to be one of the toughest teams in ASUN games, ranking near the top of the conference in a bunch of categories. The Bears are one of four teams to reach 100 hits in league games, and lead the ASUN in doubles (24), triples (4), walks (54) and stolen bases (25). The Bears also leads the ASUN in fielding percentage, holding a .981 conversion rate on defensive plays.
 
Central Arkansas and Bellarmine split last season's series 2-1 in favor of the Bears. Game one of the series produced one of the greatest innings in program history for the Bears: Central Arkansas scored 12 runs in the second inning to break it open, but even more impressive, the Bears had ten consecutive plate appearances go down as a hit, with no outs, no walks, nothing but pure bat to ball. Overall, the Bears hold a 9-1-1 record against the Knights.
 
Bellarmine (10-27, 3-9 ASUN) are on an eight-game losing streak entering the weekend, getting swept by Austin Peay and North Alabama while dropping midweeks against Evansville and Kentucky. Against the Governors, the Knights managed just three runs across the three games, getting shut out in the first two games of the series.
 
The Knight lineup has been pretty similar for most of the year, with seven consistent starters at the plate. The seven range from a .250 average to a .327, with all of them having between 23 and 33 hits. In the circle, Bellarmine has leaned on Lele Bennett and Makenzie Cowburn, with the pair combining for 204 innings this year. The pair has started all but one game, tossed nine complete outings, and is responsible for all but one win in the circle this season.
 
First pitch on Saturday is set for noon, then an 11 a.m. start time on Sunday. All three games will be on ESPN+, along with live stats online.