RICHMOND, Ky. (March 27, 2025) – The University of North Alabama softball team is in the middle of one of its toughest stretches this season, as the Lions travel to reigning Atlantic Sun Conference Regular Season Championship Eastern Kentucky for a three-game series this weekend.
 
Due to expected weather, the series has been moved up to Friday and Saturday. The series begins with a Friday doubleheader at 2 p.m. CT and will conclude on Saturday at 11 a.m. CT. The games will be hosted at Gertrude Hood Field in Richmond, Ky.
 
All three games will stream on ESPN+ while live stats are available via StatBroadcast. Tickets are available at this link.
 
SERIES INFO
North Alabama at Eastern Kentucky
Friday, March 28 at 2 p.m. CT (DH)
Saturday, March 29 at 11 a.m. CT
Location: Richmond, Ky.
Venue: Gertrude Hood Field
 
Game 1: ESPN+ | Live Stats | Tickets | Game Notes
Game 2: ESPN+ | Live Stats | Tickets | Game Notes
Game 3: ESPN+ | Live Stats | Tickets | Game Notes
 
NOTES
 
LAST TIME OUT: North Alabama was one out away from a 2-0 win over nationally-ranked Alabama on Wednesday, but the No. 25 Crimson Tide used a pair of UNA errors and rallied for a 4-2 win. Despite the loss, UNA was the aggressor most of the way with two runs in the third inning off the bats of Hailey Jones and Laura Leigh Wheeler. Senior ace Alivia Wilken tossed six shutout innings before allowing four runs — only one earned — in the seventh.
 
CROWD IN THE THOUSANDS: North Alabama hosted the Alabama game at the Florence Sportsplex on Wednesday, drawing the second-largest crowd in program history with 3,058 fans. UNA hosted a live concert before and after the game featuring Shoals artists Austin Bohannon and Gary Nichols. Both teams hosted a post-game autograph session after the game.
 
SCOUTING THE LIONS: UNA has a 22-10 overall record and a 2-4 record in ASUN play with a series win at Lipscomb and three losses at the hands of Central Arkansas last weekend. The Lions are atop the ASUN with a 2.36 team ERA and rank second with a .311 batting average. Middle infielders Hailey Jones and Briley Dover are both batting above .400 this year.
 
CIRCLE CONQUERERS: The Lions set a new Division I era school record for season ERA last season with a 2.17, giving up 113 earned runs over 364.1 innings. This year is going similarly as the Lions rank 20th in the NCAA with a 2.31 ERA behind starters Emily Simon, Katie Simon and Alivia Wilken. Another player to watch in the circle is freshman Kaylee Snyder, who has pitched 1.2 shutout innings in her last two appearances against UCA and Alabama.
 
TRIPLE THREATS: The Lions rank eighth in the nation with 14 triples this season and 10th with 0.44 per game. Sophomore Briley Dover and senior Hailey Jones have four triples apiece, which ranks second in the ASUN.
 
RANKING RISERS: The Lions and Colonels are two of the five ASUN teams in the RPI top 100, joining North Florida (49), Stetson (56) and Austin Peay (69). The Lions enter at 98 and have been as high as 30 this season. EKU is 86 but is the highest ranked team in the D1 Softball Mid-Major Rankings at No. 18.
 
SCOUTING THE COLONELS: EKU has a 22-8 overall record and a 5-0 record in league play with a doubleheader sweep of Central Arkansas and a three-game sweep of Bellarmine. The Colonels are 11-0 at home this season. Sophomore Maddi Rutan as debunked any thoughts of a "sophomore slump" as she leads the team in both hitting and pitching. She is among the top 50 players in the NCAA in batting average (.452) and RBIs (39) at the plate and strikeouts (119) and ERA (1.82) in the circle. Jane Worthington is in her 33rd season with the program.
 
SERIES HISTORY: UNA has a 7-3 record against EKU since the series started in 2022. The Lions have a 4-2 record in Richmond with a three-game sweep in 2022 and a win in 2024. UNA has won two of the three series against EKU since both have been in the ASUN.
 
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.