After months of grueling play both in and out of the MACCC Conference, the battle-tested Bears now turn the page to the postseason. And first up is a play-in game on Monday at 2 p.m. at East Central in Decatur where No. 7 Southwest faces No. 10 Holmes.

Monday's game follows not only six days of rest but the regular season finale against the No. 2 Pearl River Wildcats, a test that Southwest head coach Jack Edmonson believes was beneficial for his club heading into postseason play.

"That was a perfect game for us to play leading into the playoffs," he said. "It put us in situations that were tough and we were able to handle it and get out of it with minimal damage. We were able to run some plays under pressure and we didn't fold. We executed it perfectly and there was a lot of good that came out of it."

The Bears faced the Bulldogs in Goodman just two weeks ago on April 18. Southwest fell 8-1 in Game 1 but came back to claim the nightcap, 10-7.

Holmes enters the game hitting .315 as a team and led by Thomas Kuhn and Xavier Myles who both hit .354. Myles is second on the team in hits with 54.

Southwest counters, hitting .268 as a team with Gage Hinnant leading in hits with 56. Jake Meilstrup leads in a number of categories including average (.341), home runs (4) and steals (54). On the mound, the Bears have a team ERA of 4.71 while

Holmes has a team ERA of 5.77.

The winner will move on to a double-elimination format which begins with a contest Tuesday at 7 p.m. against No. 2 seed East Central back in Decatur.

Monday's game will be streamed on BearTV and broadcast on K106 FM.