RICHMOND, Ky. - After a brief road stint, the Eastern Kentucky University softball team is back at Gertrude Hood Field as the host North Alabama in a three game conference series on Friday and Saturday.

The Colonels (22-8, 5-0 ASUN) come into the weekend undefeated in conference play but having dropped a midweek matchup to Northern Kentucky, 2-3.

Games one and two of the series are set for Friday at 3 PM and 5:30 PM. The series finale is slated for Saturday at noon. 

All three games will be available on ESPN+ with live stats included on StatBroadcast.

SCOUTING THE LIONS

North Alabama comes into the weekend with a record comparable to the Colonels at 22-10 overall but 2-4 in ASUN play. The Lion's most recent series resulted in a sweep by Central Arkansas. UNA also dropped a midweek heartbreaker to No. 25 Alabama, having led 2-0 into the final inning, but the Crimson Tide scored four in the final frame to escape with the win.

Alivia Wilken and Emily Simon lead the Lions in the pitching circle with eight wins each. Wilken carries an 8-4 record with seventeen appearances, while Simon stands at 8-3 in fifteen appearances.

Wilken sits as the team leader in strikeouts with 70. Simon, meanwhile, leads the Lion pitching staff in ERA and allowed batting average at 1.74 and .193, respectively.

In the batter's box, Hailey Jones and Briley Dover sit neck and neck as the leaders for UNA. Both boast batting averages over .400, with Jones leading in RBIs at 37 while Dover leads in slugging percentage at .719 and tied for the lead in home runs with seven along with Bayleigh Rouse.

LAST TIME OUT

The Colonels dropped a heartbreaker to Northern Kentucky on Tuesday, falling 2-3 in the final inning.

Victoria Byrum (7-1) pitched a career-high eight strikeouts in the appearance but picked up her first loss of the season.

The Colonels inched ahead in the opening inning with a lone score before Kennedy Drafton tacked on a second in the top of the seventh with a solo home run, but the Norse snuck away with the win on a last-minute surge, walking-off the game with a two-run home run.