ELLISVILLE - With the regular season now in the books, the 13th-ranked Northwest softball program is turning its attention to the postseason, beginning with this week's MACCC Tournament from May 4-7.

Hosted by regular season conference champion Jones College, the conference tournament will pit the top eight teams from the MACCC standings for the rights to the conference title. The top five teams remaining in the tournament field will then advance to the NJCAA Region 23 Tournament, with dates and a host site yet to be determined.

Finishing fifth in the conference after last Friday's split at Southwest Mississippi, Northwest (29-11, 19-9 MACCC) will match up with the fourth-seed Pearl River on Wednesday at 6:30 P.M. The Rangers and the Wildcats split the series on March 14, with Pearl River earning a 9-4 win in Game 1 before the Rangers rebounded for a 2-0 victory in the nightcap.

Pearl River finished the regular season at 30-15 overall and 20-8 in conference play, and are currently ranked ninth in the NJCAA Division II rankings. The Wildcats are batting .287 as a team, with five players batting over .300, including Juliannah Overstreet (.353) and Dallyn Nance (.324). Payton Lee also leads Pearl River with nine home runs on the season.

However, it's what the Wildcats have done in the circle that has made all the difference. The nation's strikeout leader, Brinson Anne Rogers, has been the top arm all year for Pearl River, sporting a 15-3 overall record with 256 strikeouts, seven shutouts, two saves and a whopping 0.79 earned run average. Behind her is Hannah Embry, who has 99 strikeouts of her own as Pearl River's secondary starter.

The winner of Wednesday's Northwest-Pearl River matchup will advance to face the winner of the No. 1 vs. No. 8 contest, which features tournament host Jones College against Mississippi Gulf Coast. The losing team of both contests will face off at 1:30 P.M. on Thursday, looking to fight off elimination and remain in the hunt for a Region 23 Tournament bid.

All MACCC Tournament games will be carried on jcbobcats.com/watch. More information, including ticket links, statistics and other facts can be found on the Tournament Central page.