HUNTSVILLE | The University of Alabama in Huntsville softball team will open up play at the 2015 Gulf South Conference Softball Championships on Thursday in Valdosta, Georgia, at 2 p.m. CDT. UAH enters the event as the No. 2 seed.
 
The tournament has changed this year to a six-team bracket, and the top two seeds earn a bye meaning that the second-seeded Chargers will take on the winner of No. 3 seed North Alabama and No. 6 seed Delta State.
 
Top seed and host Valdosta State will play the winner of fourth-seeded Shorter and No. 5 seed Union.
 
The Chargers have amassed a terrific 64-24 record all-time in the tournament and has appeared in the championship game 11 times including eight titles. Against UNA in the postseason event, UAH is 7-0 while holding a 12-2 mark against its other potential opponent Delta State.
 
In the regular season, UAH posted a 37-12 record and went 23-8 in conference play en route to its second-place finish. As announced on Tuesday, the team featured five All-GSC performers including the GSC Player of the Year Kaitlyn Bannister.
 
Junior outfielder Brianna Sullivan joined Bannister on the First Team, while Second Team honorees included senior second baseman Victoria Frith, junior pitcher Kimberly Jack, and junior pitcher Tyler Harrison.
 
As a team, UAH enters the tournament leading the conference in batting average, hitting .326 on the year, and the squad has shown discipline at the plate, striking out 151 for the second-lowest strikeout total in the league.
 
The stolen base has once again been a key part of UAH's offensive attack, and after setting the GSC record for steals in a season with 239 last year, the Chargers once again pace the conference with 158 stolen bases on the year – 52 more than Shorter whose 106 is second.
 
In the circle, UAH owns the third-best team ERA in the league, owning a 1.77 mark, and the Chargers also have the third-lowest opponent batting average in the conference as teams are hitting just .219 against UAH.