With two electric weekends of college softball to kick off the season, the action continues with the 2026 Mary Nutter Classic.
The annual event welcomes the biggest names in college softball to Cathedral City, CA, and the 22nd installment of the invite is no exception. Thirty teams will go head-to-head from Thursday, Feb. 19, to Sunday, Feb. 22.
Check out the schedule, storylines and history below.
Mary Nutter Classic Schedule
2026 Mary Nutter Classic at the Big League Dreams Sports Park in Cathedral City, CA.
Fans can watch the games live on .
- Thursday, Feb. 19
- No. 14 Oregon vs. Auburn | 1 p.m.
- Oregon State vs. CBU | 1 p.m.
- California vs. UC San Diego |1 p.m.
- Utah vs. Bethune Cookman | 1:30 p.m.
- Oregon State vs. Nevada | 1 p.m.
- CBU vs. UC San Diego | 3:30 p.m.
- No. 13 Texas A&M vs. No. 14 Oregon | 3:30 p.m.
- No. 22 South Carolina vs. No. 23 Washington | 4 p.m.
- No. 11 UCLA vs. Auburn | 6 p.m.
- Rutgers vs. Bethune Cookman | 6 p.m.
- Cal State Northridge vs. BYU | 6 p.m.
- No. 2 Texas Tech vs. Fresno State | 6:30 p.m.
- No. 4 Oklahoma vs. Cal State Fullerton | 8:30 p.m.
- No. 13 Texas A&M vs. No. 14 Duke | 8:30 p.m.
- Hawai'i vs. BYU | 8:30 p.m.
- No. 2 Texas Tech vs. Team Japan | 9 p.m.
- No. 4 Oklahoma vs. San Diego State | 11 p.m.
- Rutgers vs. Cal State Fullerton | 11 p.m.
- No. 14 Duke vs. Hawai'i | 11 p.m.
- UC Riverside vs. Team Japan | 11:30 p.m.
- Friday, Feb. 20
- Fresno State vs. California |1 p.m.
- No. 6 Nebraska vs. No. 22 South Carolina | 1 p.m.
- Seattle vs. CBU | 1 p.m.
- No. 2 Texas Tech vs. Bethune Cookman | 1:30 p.m.
- Nevada vs. California | 3:30 p.m.
- No. 6 Nebraska vs. Hawai'i | 3:30 p.m.
- Seattle vs. Cal State Northridge | 3:30 p.m.
- Fresno State vs. CBU | 3:30 p.m.
- No. 4 Oklahoma vs. No. 14 Duke | 4 p.m.
- San Diego State vs. UC Riverside | 6 p.m.
- No. 14 Oregon vs. No. 22 South Carolina | 6 p.m.
- Utah vs. Cal State Northridge | 6 p.m.
- BYU vs. Long Beach State | 6 p.m.
- San Diego State vs. Saint Mary's | 6 p.m.
- No. 14 Oregon vs. Fullerton | 8:30 p.m.
- Oregon State vs. Hawai'i | 8:30 p.m.
- Loyola Marymount vs. Rutgers | 8:30 p.m
- No. 23 Washington vs. Saint Mary's | 11 p.m.
- Auburn vs. BYU | 11 p.m.
- Utah vs. Rutgers | 11 p.m.
- No. 13 Texas A&M vs. UC San Diego | 11:30 p.m.
- Saturday, Feb. 21
- San Diego State vs. Seattle | 12:30 p.m.
- No. 14 Duke vs. No. 14 Oregon | 12:30 p.m.
- Oregon State vs. Bethune Cookman | 12:30 p.m.
- No. 4 Oklahoma vs. Long Beach State | 1 p.m.
- Nevada vs. UC Riverside | 1 p.m.
- No. 2 Texas Tech vs. Cal State Fullerton | 3 p.m.
- No. 23 Washington vs. Auburn | 3 p.m.
- Oregon State vs. Cal State Northridge | 3 p.m.
- UC San Diego vs. Seattle | 3:30 p.m.
- No. 2 Texas Tech vs. San Diego State | 5:30 p.m.
- Auburn vs. Cal State Fullerton | 5:30 p.m.
- Long Beach State vs. Bethune Cookman | 5:30 p.m.
- No. 11 UCLA vs. Fresno State | 6 p.m.
- No. 6 Nebraska vs. No. 13 Texas A&M | 8 p.m.
- Utah vs. Loyola Marymount | 8 p.m.
- Saint Mary's vs. Hawai'i | 5 p.m.
- No. 11 UCLA vs. No. 22 South Carolina | 8:30 p.m.
- Rutgers vs. Team Japan | 8:30 p.m.
- No. 13 Texas A&M vs. Loyola Marymount | 10:30 p.m.
- CBU vs. Utah | 10:30 p.m.
- St. Mary's vs. South Carolina | 11 p.m.
- Hawai'i vs. Team Japan | 11 p.m.
- Rutgers vs. UC San Diego | 11 p.m.
- Sunday, Feb. 22
- No. 4 Oklahoma vs. No. 23 Washington | 12 p.m.
- No. 6 Nebraska vs. Seattle | 12 p.m.
- No. 2 Texas Tech vs. UC Riverside | 12 p.m.
- California vs. Auburn | 12 p.m.
- Oregon State vs. Long Beach State | 12 p.m.
- No. 6 Nebraska vs. California | 2:30 p.m.
- No. 23 Washington vs. Loyola Marymount | 2:30 p.m.
- Utah vs. UC Riverside | 2:30 p.m.
- Saint Mary's vs. Long Beach State | 2:30 p.m.
- Loyola Marymount vs. Team Japan | 5 p.m.
All times ET
History
The Mary Nutter Classic is held each year in honor of the hall-of-famer and pioneer of college softball, Mary Nutter, who passed in 2012.
Before the implementation of Title IX in schools, Nutter played amateur and professional softball until 1976. She then began her coaching career at Pittsburg State, leading her to create coaching clinics across the country that helped develop the sport.
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Her lifelong dedication to softball through the mentorship of athletes and coaches helped expand its popularity, while her vast impact is still felt today.
The first Mary Nutter Classic took place in 2004 and has been the premier destination for the most elite names in college softball ever since.
In 2025, the invite saw three of the teams make it to Oklahoma City in Tennessee, Oregon and UCLA.
Storylines
The 2026 Mary Nutter Classic will see nine ranked teams stroll into Cathedral City, three of which hold top-ten status in No. 2 Texas Tech, No. 4 Oklahoma and No. 6 Nebraska.
The Red Raiders are coming off their first loss of the season to Nebraska at the Shriner's Children's Clearwater Classic. The two aren't playing each other again, but how Texas Tech responds will be something to watch.
On the other hand, the Huskers are coming into Big League Dreams Sports Park with a lot of momentum after knocking off No. 1 - for the second time this season. Jordy Bahl Frahm continues to shine as one of the most dominant two-way players in college softball, pitching three shutout innings against Texas Tech in the 3-2 win.
THE HUSKERS TAKE DOWN THE NO. 1 RED RAIDERS 😤 x 🎥 ESPN+ /
— NCAA Softball (@NCAASoftball)
Nebraska looks to carry that dominance in its matchups against No. 13 Texas A&M and No. 22 South Carolina.
Another team coming in with some momentum is Oklahoma. The Sooners recently picked up a 34-0 win over UTEP and continued their seven-game win streak after their first game loss to No. 16 Arizona.
They'll play a hot No. 14 Duke team on Friday in their first ranked matchup since winning the series against the Wildcats.
Along with the matchups already named, there will be 10 ranked face-offs at the showcase. But there's an unranked team you'll want to keep an eye on.
Team Japan will be in attendance this weekend, bringing their national team to California to get reps against the nation's best. In particular, Team Japan will square off against No. 2 Texas Tech on Thursday in a must-see exhibition matchup.
This marks the first time Japan's national team has appeared in the Mary Nutter Classic since 2018, when they faced UCLA and Oklahoma.
Whether it's the plethora of top-25 face-offs or the international exhibition, there will be plenty of action to keep up with this weekend.
