• Live stat links for each game can be found on the softball schedule at CatamountSports.com.
• Follow @CatamountSB for live in-game updates.
• Each game is scheduled to have a live video stream via Alabama State's YouTube Channel.

STINGER CLASSIC - SERIES BREAKDOWNS:

» vs. Tennessee Tech:

• Tennessee Tech leads the all-time series 3-1.
• The Golden Eagles have won the last three meetings.
• The two teams last met at the Stinger Classic, at Alabama State, in 2021 with Tennessee Tech winning 9-2, 2-1.
• The two teams first met in the Catamounts' inaugural season in 2006 with WCU taking a 3-1 victory. Former Catamount Lauren Ross hit the first home run in program history against the Golden Eagles.

» at Alabama State:

• Western Carolina and Alabama State have met five times with the Catamounts sweeping the series 5-0.
• In the last two meetings WCU swept Alabama State at the Stinger Classic, in 2021, 9-8, 7-0.
• In the first meeting, in 2012, the Catamounts squeaked by with a 7-6 victory at the Buzz Classic in Woodstock, Ga.

» vs. UT Martin:

• UT Martin and Western Carolina meet for the third time on Saturday ... the Skyhawks lead the series 2-0.
• The two teams last met at the Stinger Classic in 2019 with UT Martin winning 7-3.

Noting the 2023 Catamounts:

•  Western Carolina was picked by the league coaches to finish tied for fourth in the Southern Conference, matching chromatic rival Furman.
• The Catamounts placed three on the SoCon preseason first-team led by 2021 Southern Conference Player of the Year in shortstop Bailey Huneycutt ... She was joined by Brooklynn Brewington in the outfield and Riley Lambert as the designated player ... Graduate student Myra Twitty received a nod on the preseason second team.
• A total of 17 players returns on a veteran-laden team with a total of seven seniors and a fifth year-player and a graduate student.
• The Catamounts return three pitchers from the 2022 squad including the dynamic senior Jayme Eilers along with sophomores Tessa Juett and Makenzie Martin ... Juett had a strong close to her freshman campaign which included a complete game with five strikeouts in the 3-2 win over ETSU in the elimination game of the 2022 SoCon Tournament.
• The Catamounts also shored up its pitching with Villanova transfer Taylor Norton. She saw limited action with the Wildcats, making two relief appearances before an injury sidelined her. She entered Villanova as the Richmond Times Dispatch Player of the Year at Cosby HS.
• The top three returning offensive threats for Western Carolina - Huneycutt (50), Brewington (50) and Twitty (39) - equated for 139 of the Catamounts 332 hits, almost a third of WCU's offensive production in 2022.
• Brewington snapped the single-season stolen base record in 2022 with 33 and is now chasing the stolen base career record. She needs 17 to match Amelia Griffin (2011-14) who ended her career with 50 stolen bases.
• Hunneycutt broke the program record for home runs in a career and currently holds the top spot with 37 round-trippers ... She now sets her sights on chasing WCU's RBI record as she currently has 104 and is looking to dethrone former Catamount Hunter Gibbons (2016-19) who ended four-year career with 129 ... Hunneycutt is also on pace to close out her career with the program's hit record ... Hunneycutt has 143 in her career and is chasing Stephanie Beatty's (2006-09) 195 hits – a record that has stood for 14 years.