Idaho State softball steps onto the NCAA Tournament stage for the first time in program history Friday night, facing Oregon at 7 p.m. PT in the opening day of the Eugene Regional at Jane Sanders Stadium. The matchup opens a four-team, double-elimination regional that also sends Mississippi State and St. Mary's onto the field earlier in the day.
Oregon, the No. 14 overall seed, hosts a regional for the second straight season and is coming in at 40-12. Idaho State arrives after winning the Big Sky Conference tournament and entering the bracket with a 37-18 record, a run that finally put the Bengals into the field after years of trying. Mississippi State and St. Mary's, meanwhile, are set for a 4:30 p.m. PT first pitch before the Ducks and Bengals meet on ESPN2.
The Eugene Regional begins Friday with Mississippi State against St. Mary's at 4:30 p.m. PT, followed by Oregon and Idaho State at 7 p.m. PT. The Ducks' game will air on ESPN2 and can also be streamed through the app, + and Fubo.
For Oregon, the setting is familiar. The Ducks hosted a regional last season and rode that home-site advantage all the way to the 2025 Women's College World Series. This time, they return to Jane Sanders Stadium with a 40-12 record and another top-16 seed, looking to defend home turf in a bracket that gives no team much margin for error.
Idaho State brings a different kind of momentum. The Bengals earned their spot by winning the Big Sky Conference tournament, then drew one of the most visible assignments in the opening round. Their first NCAA Tournament game is also their first chance to test themselves against a national seed on a stage that, for this program, has been decades in the making.
The tension in the regional is simple. Oregon is expected to advance, but the first game matters because a double-elimination bracket can turn quickly, and Idaho State has already shown it can survive pressure. Friday night gives the Bengals a shot to turn a breakthrough appearance into something more than a footnote, while the Ducks try to make sure the road through Eugene stays on schedule.
