KUTZTOWN, Pa. – The 19th-ranked Kutztown softball team has its dancing shoes on this week as it will once again compete in the NCAA Division II Championships. KU will welcome three teams to North Campus Field for a double-elimination Atlantic Regional pod, beginning Thursday, May 8, and running through Saturday, May 10.
 
The Golden Bears' (39-16 overall) first opponent is the seventh seed, Charleston (36-15) from the Mountain East Conference, at 11 a.m., Thursday. The Golden Eagles are coming off winning the MEC Tournament last weekend. The other two teams traveling to North Campus Field are the three seed and Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference runners-up, Shepherd (28-22-1), and the sixth seed, Bloomsburg (31-19), making it three-of-four teams from the PSAC. Those two teams will meet in game two at 1:30 p.m., following KU and UC.
 
Friday's action is set to begin at 10 a.m., with the two winners of Thursdays games meeting in game three. The first elimination game of day one's two losing teams will meet at 12:30 p.m., with the third game of the day, another elimination game, set for 3 p.m. Saturday will pit the final two teams left standing for a game at 1 p.m., and then an "if necessary" game at 3:30 p.m.
 
Tickets can be purchased online in advance at the link above or by clicking HERE. Adults are $10, Seniors (65+), students with ID and children (ages 3-12) are $5, while children two years and younger are free.
 
It is the fifth straight season that Kutztown has qualified for the NCAA Tournament and the 23rd time in program history, all under current head coach, Judy Lawes. The Maroon and Gold have played 92 games at NCAAs and has an even 46-46 record with a national runner-up finish in 2013 and a third-place finish in 2012. Last season, KU made a trip to Super Regionals, but fell one win short of qualifying for championships, losing to the Golden Eagles.
 
Thursday's game one will be a rematch of the Atlantic Region's Super Regional in 2024, where Charleston took game one 5-1, KU answered with a 1-0 victory in game two to force a deciding game three, which UC won 2-0. The two teams have played 15 games, including five in the last two seasons, all in NCAAs. The Golden Bears are 7-8 all-time against the Golden Eagles, who will be making their first trip to North Campus Field.
 
In the other pod, top-seed and PSAC champion, East Stroudsburg, will host eighth-seeded Bowie State, fourth-seeded Shippensburg and fifth-seeded West Chester.
 
Winners of the two pods will meet in the Super Regional round, a best-of-three game series on Thursday, May 15, and Friday, May 16, at the highest remaining seed, for a trip to Chattanooga, Tenn., and the championship tournament.