LOUISVILLE, Ky. (April 26, 2024) – The University of North Alabama softball team is in the driver's seat to clinch an automatic berth into the Atlantic Sun Conference Championship Tournament this weekend, as the Lions hit the road for a three-game series with Bellarmine in Louisville, Ky.
 
The series runs from April 27-28 and begins with a Saturday doubleheader at 12 p.m. ET and 11 a.m. CT for fans watching in the Shoals. The series finale is set for Sunday at 10 a.m. CT.
 
With six conference games remaining, the Lions are currently tied for fourth in the ASUN standings with an 11-7 record and need just one win to clinch a spot in the postseason tournament. The top eight teams make the postseason tournament and the top four teams avoid the single elimination round with a first-round bye.
 
While UNA has a berth on the line, Bellarmine is in a different boat. The Knights are currently on the outside looking in at 5-13, sitting ninth in the standings just one game behind Kennesaw State at 6-12.
 
All three games will air on ESPN+ and will have live stats available via SIDEARM. Admission is free to all three games.
 
GAME 1
North Alabama at Bellarmine
Saturday, April 27, 2024
11 a.m. CT
ESPN+ | Live Stats | Game Notes | Twitter
 
GAME 2
North Alabama at Bellarmine
Saturday, April 27, 2024
1 p.m. CT
ESPN+ | Live Stats | Game Notes | Twitter
 
GAME 3
North Alabama at Bellarmine
Sunday, April 28, 2024
10 a.m. CT
ESPN+ | Live Stats | Game Notes | Twitter
 
 
NOTES
 
LAST TIME OUT: North Alabama took two of three games from Kennesaw State last weekend, winning both Saturday games by 2-1 and 6-0 finals. The Lions limited KSU to just four hits in those games while totaling 14 as an offense. The Owls salvaged the series Sunday with a 5-0 win in the finale.
 
SCOUTING THE LIONS: UNA has twice as many wins as losses with a 30-15 overall record. The Lions are in a three-way tie for fourth in the ASUN standings with an 11-7 record alongside Jacksonville and Central Arkansas. UNA has won at least one game in every ASUN series this season and remains the only ASUN team to beat EKU, who is 36-6 overall and 17-1 in ASUN play.
 
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT: Bellarmine remains in the mix for a postseason berth despite a last-place ranking in the ASUN preseason poll, entering 13-28 overall and 5-13 in the league standings. Already sporting a nine-win improvement from last season, Bellarmine owns a series win over Jacksonville and single wins over Austin Peay, Stetson and Lipscomb. However, the Knights are looking to snap a seven-game losing streak following sweeps by Kennesaw State and EKU and a midweek loss to Northern Kentucky on Wednesday.
 
SERIES HISTORY: UNA and Bellarmine have played each other 21 times dating back to 1994. UNA owns a commanding 16-5 lead in the all-time series, including a 6-0 record as Division I opponents. The Lions have won eight straight games over Bellarmine dating back to 2015 when both teams were members of NCAA Division II. Bellarmine seeks its first win over UNA since 2009, which took place at a neutral site tournament in Decatur, Ala.
 
FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING: Even though UNA has played Bellarmine 21 times in the last 30 years, Bellarmine has never hosted the Lions in Kentucky. The two sides have battled in Florence 15 times, including a pair of ASUN series in 2021 and 2022. Five meetings were neutral site games in Alabama cities — Decatur, Huntsville and Birmingham — while the only meeting outside of the state happened at West Georgia in 2003.
 
ALL THREE PHASES: The Lions join North Florida as the only two teams in the ASUN to rank among the top three teams in all three major hitting-pitching-fielding categories. The Lions are fourth in batting average (.263), second in ERA (2.31) and second in fielding percentage (.975).
 
LIGHTS OUT PITCHING: UNA is led in the circle by a pair of Junior College transfers in Cassidy Duskin and Alivia Wilken. Wilken has had most of the shine this season, including a pair of ASUN Pitcher of the Week awards on the mantle, but Duskin got the shine this past weekend with a one-hit shutout win over KSU. UNA ranks second in the ASUN with a 2.31 team ERA.
 
WILKEN'S WORLD: Wilken is nationally ranked in a number of categories this season. She is the ASUN leader in innings pitched (149.1), shutouts (7), complete games (17), strikeout-to-walk ratio (5.50) and walks-per-seven innings (0.94). When factoring in her 1.50 ERA, she ranks among the top 28 pitchers in the nation in all six categories.
 
LEFT, RIGHT, LEFT: The Lions are one of the rare teams with two left-handed starters with Wilken and Duskin. Offensively, UNA has had over 1,000 at-bats against right-handed pitchers and just 95 against lefties. Meanwhile, UNA's opponents have totaled 926 at-bats against the lefty duo against just 187 against right-handers.
 
FRAME THIS: Senior outfielder Felicity Frame led the ASUN in hitting last season and currently ranks third in the league with 53 hits this season. Frame is batting .390 this season to rank second in the ASUN and has hovered around .400 nearly all season. She enters the weekend with 298 career hits, including 173 in two seasons at Wallace State CC.
 
COVER THE BASES: The Lions rank second in the ASUN in multi-base hits with 98, including 61 doubles, 16 triples and 21 homers. UNA leads the league in triples, ranks second in doubles and third in long balls. Middle infielders Haven Kirby and Hailey Jones lead the Lions with a combined 37 multi-base hits, including five homers each. EKU is the league leader with 105 multi-base hits.
 
HOT CORNER HERO: True freshman Briley Dover is batting .302 this season and has started all 45 games at third base, joining Kirby and Jones as the only every day starters. She leads the team with four triples and an .862 OPS (on-base plus slugging). The former Loretto High School standout was the Times Daily Large Class Player of the Year in 2022 and 2023.
 
ON THE HORIZON: The Lions have one ASUN series remaining after this weekend, welcoming Austin Peay to Florence from May 3-4. The ASUN Championship Tournament is set for May 7-11 in Oxford, Ala.
 
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.