CULLOWHEE, N.C. – The Western Carolina softball team begins its quest for the 2023 Southern Conference Tournament crown on Wednesday morning as the fourth-seeded Catamounts face fifth-seeded Mercer at 10 a.m. in the tournament opener at Chattanooga's Frost Stadium.
 
All games in the SoCon Tournament will be streamed on ESPN+ (paid subscription required) with free live stats available on CatamountSports.com and SoConSports.com.
 
The winner of Wednesday's game advances to face top-seeded and regular-season champion UNCG on Thursday at 12:30 p.m. The losing team plays an elimination game on Thursday night with the first pitch scheduled for 8 p.m.
 
WCU finished the regular season 20-24 overall and 8-10 in SoCon play that included a series win over Mercer in Macon on April 22-23. The Catamounts were swept at UNCG to close out regular season play after recording a home sweep of ETSU the weekend before. Senior Brooklynn Brewington and fifth-year senior Bailey Huneycutt earned first-team All-SoCon honors as the league announced its postseason honors earlier on Tuesday.
 
Mercer enters the league tournament with an 18-35 overall record and also at 8-10 in conference games. The Bears lost two out of three at ETSU to close out the regular season, with one of the losses coming in extra innings. Senior infielder Rebecca Laudino and senior designated player Kylie Helm earned second-team All-SoCon honors with Avery Barton and Grace Taylor earning spots on the league's All-Freshman Team.
 
Wednesday's game is the fourth meeting between WCU and Mercer in the SoCon Tournament with the Bears holding a slight 2-1 edge. WCU earned a 4-1 victory during the 2021 tournament held in Greensboro, N.C.
 
For the latest information on Catamount softball, follow @catamounts and @catamountsb on Twitter or go to www.CatamountSports.com.