HUNTSVILLE | The No. 16 University of Alabama in Huntsville softball team will open up play at the 2019 Gulf South Conference Championship on Thursday as the No. 2 seed in the tournament, taking on seventh-seeded Union at 12:30 p.m. in Pensacola, Florida.
 
West Florida is the top seed in the tournament and is the host of the event. 
 
The Chargers earned the second seed in the field after going 21-8 in conference play on their way to a regular season overall mark of 37-13.
 
UAH is the top offensive team in the conference – and one of the best in the country – as the team features eight starters are hitting better than .300 including Shelby Booker who is batting .456 and Ashley Cornell who owns a .419 average. Nationally, the Chargers are fifth in scoring and on-base percentage while ranking ninth in batting average and slugging percentage.
 
The Chargers are scoring 7.86 runs per game, and the team owns a .347 batting average.
 
In the circle, UAH features has utilized six different arms throughout the season led by Kiara Akles who is 11-1 with 51 strikeouts, while Sydnee Uhlman has been especially effective in relief, going 9-4 with eight saves and a team-high 55 strikeouts.
 
In the regular season, UAH won nine of its 10 GSC series including when it met Union at home in the middle of April. In that series, the Chargers won the opener 4-0 before falling 5-2 in the middle game, and UAH won the three-game set with an 8-0 victory in six innings in the finale.
 
The Bulldogs improved from last year by a total of nine wins, posting a 29-23 overall mark and a 14-16 GSC record. Union also has two players batting over .400 including Kaitlyn Kelley who is hitting .432 thanks in part two 19 doubles and 13 home runs, and she leads the league with 61 RBI.
 
As a staff, UU has a 4.28 ERA, and Gabby Morris leads the team with 123 strikeouts while going 11-15 and owning a 4.01 ERA.
 
This will mark the first meeting between the two programs in the conference tournament.
 
All-time in the GSC postseason event, the Chargers are 68-30 with 12 championship game appearances and eight titles.
 
The winner of Thursday's game will play the winner of No. 3 seed Mississippi College and sixth-seeded West Georgia on Friday at 3 p.m., while the two losing teams from those contests will meet at 10 a.m. on Friday.