The No. 3 seeded Phoenix College Bears opened the 2026 NJCAA Region I Division II Tournament with a hard-fought 3-1 loss to No. 2 seed South Mountain Community College on Thursday in Tucson.

Despite the loss, the Bears remain alive in the double-elimination tournament and will now face No. 4 seed Scottsdale Community College on May 8 in an elimination matchup.

Phoenix College collected six hits in the contest, with Eva Issitt, Katelyn Larney, Olivia Deford, Harli Noriega, Gianna Baca, and Mckayla Ethington each recording hits. Issitt and Baca both added doubles, while Baca drove in the Bears' lone run in the fourth inning.

Deford and Baca also each stole a base as Phoenix College continued to apply pressure offensively throughout the game.

Inside the circle, Maddison Peter delivered another strong postseason performance despite taking the loss. Peter allowed just four hits and struck out one across six innings. None of South Mountain's three runs were earned.

South Mountain scored single runs in the first, third, and fifth innings and held off the Bears late behind strong pitching from Sadie Su'a and Aryka Ortega.

Phoenix College now turns its attention to Scottsdale Community College in Friday's double elimination game. The Bears went 3-1 against the Artichokes during the regular season.

Scottsdale enters the matchup as the No. 4 seed in the tournament, while the Bears will look to extend their postseason run and battle their way through the elimination bracket.