CHARLESTON, W.Va. – For the third consecutive year, the Kutztown softball team will be competing in the NCAA Tournament. KU received the sixth seed in the Atlantic Region and will travel to Charleston, W.Va., for a four-team pod, hosted by the Golden Eagles.
 
The Golden Bears (29-24 overall) will meet host Charleston (40-9) in their first game on Thursday at noon. It is the third straight season the Maroon and Gold have reached NCAAs and the 21st overall. Kutztown last competed in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference tournament last week where it won one-of-three games, beating Mercyhurst 7-4 in the opening game before dropping back-to-back games to PSAC runner-up Bloomsburg, 5-3, and Atlantic Regional top seed, East Stroudsburg, 7-1.
 
General admission will be $10 per person and $5 for senior citizens, children and students. Children under the age of 2 are free. There are two separate, four-team pods at host sites. Four teams will participate at each of the 16 regional sites in double-elimination tournaments, held May 11-13. Winners will advance to the super regionals, slated for May 18-19, at the highest seeded team which placed a bid to host. The finals will be held May 25-31, at the Frost Stadium at Warner Park and will be hosted by Lee University, the University of North Georgia and the Chattanooga Sports Commission. Kutztown and Charleston are joined by the two seed, Shippensburg, and the seventh seed, Davis & Elkins.
 
Kutztown and Charleston have met 10 times in the program's histories, with each team winning five games. They last met back on March 12, 2019, in Minneola, Fla., with KU winning 10-6. The Golden Bears have won the last two meetings, in 2019 and 2018. The two teams squared off in regionals back in 2017, with the Golden Eagles coming out on top 10-2.
 
Charleston is coming off its first Mountain East Conference championship in program history when it won four games in-a-row, including back-to-back games over the Senators in the final.
 
The winner of Thursday's opening game will play the winner of Shippensburg-Davis & Elkins on Friday morning. The loser of KU-UC will play the loser of the SHU-D&E loser.