STATE SOFTBALL TOURNAMENT CAPSULES

CLASS 6A

WHEN Thursday-Saturday

WHERE Fayetteville

DEFENDING CHAMPION Bryant

TITLE FAVORITE Bryant

OTHER KEY CONTENDERS Rogers, Bentonville

SLEEPER Cabot

FIRST-ROUND INTRIGUE Conway vs. Fort Smith Northside

NOTEWORTHY Bryant will be aiming to capture its second straight state championship and fifth since 2010. The Lady Hornets have won 15 consecutive games and haven’t lost to a team from Arkansas this season. … Rogers won 13 of its 15 6A-West Conference games by four runs or more. … Bentonville has won five titles since 2016. … North Little Rock, Jonesboro, Fort Smith Northside and Little Rock Central all have losing records going into the tournament. … Bentonville West started the season 7-1 but went 9-13 over its final 22 games. … Cabot Coach Chris Cope has won 405 career games.

CLASS 5A

WHEN Thursday-Saturday

WHERE Harrison

DEFENDING CHAMPION Benton

TITLE FAVORITE Sheridan

OTHER KEY CONTENDERS Benton, Greenwood, Beebe

SLEEPER Maumelle

FIRST-ROUND INTRIGUE Texarkana vs. Mountain Home

NOTEWORTHY Two-time, reigning champion Benton defeated Greenbrier — it’s first-round opponent — 4-1 in early March. … Sheridan won its first 18 games before losing backto-back games to the Saline County tandem of Bryant (8-6) and Bauxite (3-2). … Two of Greenwood’s losses were to fellow Class 5A playoff participants Benton and Maumelle. The Lady Bulldogs’ other defeat came to Class 6A Bentonville West. … Mountain Home has won six of its past seven games. The Lady Bombers’ only loss in that span was to Greenbrier. … Beebe finished unbeaten in the 5A-Central Conference for the second straight season.

CLASS 4A

WHEN Thursday-Saturday

WHERE Gravette

DEFENDING CHAMPION Gravette

TITLE FAVORITE Pea Ridge

OTHER KEY CONTENDERS Gravette, Nashville, Bauxite

SLEEPER Monticello

FIRST-ROUND INTRIGUE Brookland vs. Pea Ridge

NOTEWORTHY Gravette, last year’s champion, went 4-4 in arguably the toughest conference in Class 4A, but reached the regional final last week. The Lady Lions lost 4-3 to Gentry. … Nashville has won 17 of its past 18 games and put an end to Monticello’s 23-game winning streak last week. … Bauxite could meet Gravette in Friday’s second round if the Lady Lions are able to beat Star City. Gravette beat Bauxite 8-2 in last year’s semifinals. … Malvern’s Kendall Watson has hit 12 home runs on the season for the Lady Leopards. … Four of Farmington’s five losses came to Pea Ridge and Gentry.

CLASS 3A

WHEN Thursday-Saturday

WHERE Hot Springs

DEFENDING CHAMPION Booneville

TITLE FAVORITE Atkins

OTHER KEY CONTENDERS Hackett, Harding Academy, Mayflower

SLEEPER DeWitt

FIRST-ROUND INTRIGUE Atkins vs. Booneville

NOTEWORTHY The first-round matchup between Atkins and Booneville may be the most intriguing of all opening-round games across the state. It is a rematch of last year’s final that Booneville won 4-3. … DeWitt has won 22 straight games since losing 5-2 to Sheridan two months ago. … Mayflower’s Ruby Ott batted .700 and drove in seven runs during last week’s regional tournament. … Salem is the only team in the state that hasn’t lost. The Lady Greyhounds are coming off an 8-5 win over Melbourne in the 3A-2 regional title game. … Different teams have won the past five state championships.

CLASS 2A

WHEN Thursday-Saturday

WHERE Forrest City/Palestine-Wheatley

DEFENDING CHAMPION Riverside

TITLE FAVORITE Riverside

OTHER KEY CONTENDERS Mansfield, Carlisle, Magnet Cove

SLEEPER Des Arc

FIRST-ROUND INTRIGUE Magnet Cove vs. Des Arc

NOTEWORTHY The only team to defeat Riverside this season was Class 5A Greene County Tech in April. … Rison has been victorious in 17 of its past 18 games. The Lady Wildcats beat Cleveland County rival Woodlawn three times during that stretch. … Mansfield, last year’s runner-up, has won its past 19 games after losing to Mena 2-1 in its second game of the season. … Central Arkansas Christian started the season with losses in six of its first seven matchups, but the Lady Mustangs are 7-1 since. … Bigelow has gone 3-5 in its past eight games.

CLASS 1A

WHEN Thursday-Saturday

WHERE West Side Greers Ferry

DEFENDING CHAMPION Taylor

TITLE FAVORITE Taylor

OTHER KEY CONTENDERS Bradley, Concord, Shirley

SLEEPER Midland

FIRST-ROUND INTRIGUE Wonderview vs. Hampton

NOTEWORTHY Taylor is riding a 21-game winning streak and comes in as the favorite to win a state-record seventh consecutive championship. The Lady Tigers have won nine crowns overall. … The only Class 1A team that’s beaten Bradley this season is Taylor, which did it three times. … The host team, West Side Greers Ferry, has lost six of its past 10 games, but the Lady Eagles are coming off a 10-7 win over Viola and have a formidable matchup with County Line. … Lead Hill gave up a total of 76 runs in four games against Jasper this year. … Five of Hampton’s eight losses were to either Bradley or Taylor.