How to Watch the 2026 Big Ten Softball Tournament with Preview, Breakdown, TV Channel

The University of Maryland will play host to the 2026 Big Ten Softball Tournament, beginning Wednesday, May 6, through Saturday, May 9, at the Maryland Softball Stadium.

The conference's top 12 teams will compete, looking to capture the Big Ten Tournament title and an automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament.

Michigan has won the last two Big Ten Tournament titles.

The format will once again feature a 12-team, four-day, single-elimination style with the winner earning an automatic bid for the 2026 NCAA Tournament.

Bracket

2026 Big Ten Softball Standings

1. Nebraska
2. Oregon
3. UCLA
4. Indiana
5. Washington
6. Northwestern
7. Wisconsin
8. Ohio State
9. Penn State
10. Purdue
11. Michigan
12. Minnesota
13. Iowa
14. Rutgers
15. Maryland
16. Michigan State
17. Illinois

Only the top 12 seeds qualified

2026 Big Ten Tournament Schedule and TV Channel

First Round: Wednesday, May 6

Game 1 | Minnesota 2, Washington 4

Minnesota got ahead of the Huskies first, and later homered, but RBIs from Marley Teasley, Kaycie Burdick, and Ava Carroll were enough for Washington to march on. An insurance run was added by Giselle Alvarez when she advanced on a wild pitch from Macy Richardson.

Morgan Reimer takes the complete game win on the mound after tossing five strikeouts.

The Gophers end their season with a 16-36 record.

Game 2 | Michigan 9, Ohio State 0

The reigning Big Ten Tournament champions cruised right to a rule-rule victory over rival Ohio State. Janelle Ilacqua led the offense with three hits with two RBIs, while Jenissa Conway and Lilly Vallimont followed with two hits each. 

Gabby Ellis earned her first complete-game shutout of the season, allowing no runs on five hits with two strikeouts. 

Game 3 | Wisconsin 4, Purdue 3

The Badgers walked off the Boilermakers to stay alive. 

Purdue was up by three in the sixth inning, but a major three-run home run from Jaclyn Showalter evened it out. With runners on second and third, in the bottom of the seventh, it was Hannah Conger’s dart to left field that drove in the winning run. 

Game 4 | Penn State 11, Northwestern 5

Penn State grabbed its first win over Northwestern in 15 years due to a four-homer performance from the offense and excellent outings from Abigail Britton,  Brevyn Kellepouris, and  McKenna Young in the circle. 

Freshman Breanna Hanik made history in the game when she went 3-for-5 with three runs scored, three RBIs, and a homer. She is now tied for the ninth-most runs in a single game in Penn State program history.

Natalie Lieto was the other star at the dish, going 3-for-3 with a run scored, three RBIs, and a homer. 

Quarterfinals: Thursday, May 7

Game 5 | Indiana 9, Washington 2

The Hoosiers’ offense was lights out to knock off the Huskies. 

Brooke Mannon’s RBI single kicked off the show, followed by a two-run homer from Aly VanBrandt. When the Huskies’ defense got sloppy and allowed two unearned runs, the momentum kept pumping for Indiana. Alex Cooper added plenty of insurance runs with a three-run home run to right-center. 

Ella Troutt got the win on the mound after throwing five innings with two strikeouts.

Game 6 | Michigan 2, Nebraska 4

Emmerson Cope homered and collected two hits for the Nebraska Cornhuskers in a 4-2 win over the Michigan Wolverines.

Jordy Frahm earned the win in the circle, pitching a complete game and striking out nine.

Michigan scored first but Nebraska pushed three runs across in the bottom of the first to take the lead. Neither team scored again until the fourth when they exchanged runs.

The win extends Nebraska's streak to 19 games, which is the longest active win streak in the country.

Game 7 | Wisconsin 11, Oregon 9

The seventh-seeded Wisconsin Badgers stunned the No. 2 seed Oregon Ducks with a massive 11-9 win.

The Badgers were relentless at the plate and out-hit the Ducks 15-9 with eight different players collecting at least one hit. Six Badgers had at least two hits.

Six of Wisconsin's hit were for extra bases and four of them were home runs.

Game 8 | UCLA 6, Penn State 1

The Bruins homered four times, three in the first inning alone, to take the win over Penn State.

Megan Grant and freshman Bri Alejandre each hit solo home runs, while redshirt freshman Aleena Garcia added a two-run shot. Grant ripped the first pitch she saw in her first at-bat to give her her 36th homer of the season, tying her for the national lead with Oklahoma’s Kendall Wells. She’s one away from tying the NCAA single-season record. 

UCLA ace Taylor Tinsley threw her 19th complete game of the season, striking out a season-high nine batters. She allowed just one earned run. 

Semifinals: Friday, May 8

Game 9 | Nebraska 5, Indiana 0

Alexis Jensen threw six straight strikeouts to start the game and ended with 12 in the complete-game shutout. 

RBIs from Hannah Camenzind, Lauren Camenzind, Jordy Frahm, Hannah Coor, and Samantha Bland got the job offensively. 

Game 10 | UCLA 19, Wisconsin 5

A grand slam from Soo-Jin Berry to put the Bruins up 6-0 in the first inning was just the start of a massive performance from the offense. 

Megan Grant ripped a historic homer in the second to tie the NCAA Division I record with her 37th of the year. Kaniya Bragg and Rylee Simp both added a two-run shot, while Jordan Woolery, Ramsey Suarez, Jolyna Lamar, and Jazmine Leyva provided RBIs to secure the run-rule victory. 

Taylor Tinsley threw four innings with four strikeouts before Natalie Cable stepped in finish off the win. 

Championship: Saturday, May 9

Game 11 | Nebraska 7, UCLA 2

UCLA's Megan Grant made history with her 38th home run of the season, but it was the Nebraska Cornhuskers who came away with the title.

Jordy Frahm held the Bruins to five hits and struck out eight.

Ava Kuszak and Kacie Hoffmann both homered for the Huskers while Hoffmann and Hannah Camenzind drove in two runs apiece.

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