Softball season is finally here and the Ducks are getting their season started this weekend when they attend the National Fastpitch Coaches Association Leadoff classic in Clearwater Florida. The Ducks have 5 scheduled games this weekend including 2 today, 2 more Saturday, and 1 final game early Sunday morning.
Non-conference play is crucial for an Oregon program in the B1G. If Oregon is to secure a Top 8 seed in the tournament, and a path to Oklahoma City that goes through Eugene via hosting a Super
Regional, then the Ducks will need to secure some big wins in the Non-conference and a couple of those opponents are on Deck this weekend.
For reference here is where Oregon ranks in all of the Softball Pre-season rankings and their finish last year
ESPN/Softball USA Rank: 5
D1 Softball.com Rank: 6
Softball America Rank: 5
USA Today/NFCA Coaches: 5
2025 Conference Finish: 1st in B1G B1G Tournament Quarter-finals
2025 Post-Season Finish: WCWS Quarter-Finals
Here are all of the opponents Oregon will be facing this weekend:
Friday 10AM Missouri
Missouri was a bottom dweller in the SEC last year, the country’s deepest Softball conference. Securing a win against Mizzou will be crucial as they will be a common opponent the Ducks will share with the best the SEC common tournament selection time. Last year the Ducks faced off against the Tigers at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic and won 11-3. A similar result to start this season would be a good first step for the Ducks
ESPN/Softball USA Rank: Others Receiving Votes
D1 Softball.com Rank: Not Ranked
Softball America Rank: Not Ranked
USA Today/NFCA Coaches: Not Ranked
2025 Conference Finish: 14th in the SEC
Friday 1PM Clemson
Clemson was and looks again to be a contender in the ACC. Based on the pre-season polls this is the 2nd biggest game for the Ducks this weekend and a win would be the first major bullet point on the Ducks resume for 2026.
ESPN/Softball USA Rank: 12
D1 Softball.com Rank: 15
Softball America Rank: 9
USA Today/NFCA Coaches: 11
2025 Conference Finish: 2nd in ACC (Won ACC Tournament)
2025 Post-Season Finish: Super Regional
Saturday 1PM Liberty
A familiar foe gets things underway on Saturday as the Ducks will face off against the team they defeated in the Super-Regional last year to advance to Oklahoma City. Although they are from a smaller conference the Flames will likely make the NCAA tournament again this season by securing the automatic bid for Conference USA.
ESPN/Softball USA Rank: 23
D1 Softball.com Rank: Others receiving votes
Softball America Rank: Not ranked
USA Today/NFCA Coaches: 17
2025 Conference Finish: 1st in CUSA (Won CUSA)
2025 Post-season Finish: Super-regional
Saturday 4PM Tennessee
This is the big one. Tennessee is a perennial contender in softball and the pre-season polls suggest they will be again this season. Last year the Ducks picked up their first big win of the season when they took down Tennessee in extra innings and that would help propel the Ducks to the eventual 16 overall seed in the NCAA tournament. A win again this year would make a statement to the rest of College Softball
ESPN/Softball USA Rank: 4
D1 Softball.com Rank: 4
Softball America Rank: 4
USA Today/NFCA Coaches: 4
2025 Conference Finish: 4th in SEC (SEC Quarter-Finals)
2025 Post-season Finish: WCWS Semi-Final
Sunday 7AM Southeastern Louisiana
Finally the Ducks close things out with a very early game against SE Louisiana before making the long trip back home. SE Louisiana from the Southland conference did win that league last year and took out LSU in LSU’s regional by defeating the Tigers twice.
ESPN/Softball USA Rank: Not Ranked
D1 Softball.com Rank: Not Ranked
Softball America Rank: Not Ranked
USA Today/NFCA Coaches: Others Receiving Votes
2025 Conference Finish: 2nd in Southland (Won Southland)
2025 Post-season Finish: NCAA Regionals
It has the potential to be a special season for the Softball team and it gets started today!
