POCATELLO, Idaho – Coming off a memorable 2025 campaign that saw Idaho State claim the Big Sky regular season championship, the Bengals are set to build on that success with a 2026 schedule featuring national powers, a program-record number of home games, and matchups against NCAA Women's College World Series participants.
"We have a very exciting schedule ahead of us for the 2026 season," said Head Coach Andrew Rich. "There are plenty of challenges that we'll face and then to have 24 home games is awesome. All of that leading up to hosting the Big Sky Tournament will be great and we can't wait to see all the Bengal fans filling up the park at Direct Communications Field."
The 56-game schedule opens with four early-season tournaments before transitioning into a historic home stretch that will bring regional rivals and Big Sky foes to Direct Communications Field at Miller Ranch Stadium. All game times are listed in Mountain Time.
Idaho State begins the season February 6–8 at the Fresno State Tournament, where the Bengals will face Southern Illinois Edwardsville (SIUE) and host Fresno State in a three-day set.
The following weekend, the Bengals head south for the UTEP/New Mexico State Tournament, taking on Minnesota, UTEP, Oklahoma, and New Mexico State across El Paso and Las Cruces. The event marks one of the most competitive nonconference weekends in program history, facing perennial World Series Contender, Oklahoma.
From there, the Bengals continue their early road swing at the UNLV Tournament (Feb. 20–22), squaring off with Utah Valley, Valparaiso, UNLV, and Merrimack.
The final nonconference stop comes at the Oregon Tournament (Feb. 27–Mar. 1), featuring matchups with Samford, Stetson, and Big-10 power Oregon at Jane Sanders Stadium.
The Bengals return to Pocatello for the Idaho State Tournament (Mar. 5–8), the first of several marquee weekends at Miller Ranch Stadium. Idaho State will host Southern Utah and Maine for a six-game series.
Following a single road matchup at Utah State (Mar. 10), the Bengals begin an ambitious stretch of 18 home games in March and April. The Big Sky/WCC Crossover series opens with San Diego (Mar. 13–14) on the road before returning home for contests against Oregon State (Mar. 19–20) and Seattle (Mar. 21–22).
Big Sky Conference play begins March 28–29 when Weber State visits Pocatello, followed by consecutive home weekends against Portland State (Apr. 3–4) and Sacramento State (Apr. 17–18). Between those series, Idaho State will travel to Northern Colorado (Apr. 10–11) and host nonconference matchups with Boise State (Apr. 14) and Utah Valley (Apr. 22).
The Bengals close the regular season April 25–26 at Montana, setting the stage for the Big Sky Conference Championship, hosted in Pocatello from May 4–7. The road to the NCAA postseason continues with potential berths in the NCAA Regionals (May 14–17), Super Regionals (May 21–24), and ultimately the Women's College World Series (May 28–June 5) in Oklahoma City.
2026 Idaho State Softball Schedule
(All times listed in Mountain Time | Home Games Bolded)
February
Feb. 6 | 2:00 PM | SIUE | Fresno, CA | Fresno State Tournament
Feb. 6 | 6:00 PM | Fresno State | Fresno, CA | Fresno State Tournament
Feb. 7 | 12:00 PM | SIUE | Fresno, CA | Fresno State Tournament
Feb. 7 | 2:00 PM | Fresno State | Fresno, CA | Fresno State Tournament
Feb. 8 | 10:30 AM | SIUE | Fresno, CA | Fresno State Tournament
Feb. 13 | 11:00 AM | Minnesota | El Paso, TX | UTEP/New Mexico State Tournament
Feb. 13 | 5:00 PM | UTEP | El Paso, TX | UTEP/New Mexico State Tournament
Feb. 14 | 12:00 PM | Oklahoma | Las Cruces, NM | UTEP/New Mexico State Tournament
Feb. 14 | 6:00 PM | New Mexico State | Las Cruces, NM | UTEP/New Mexico State Tournament
Feb. 15 | 9:30 AM | UTEP | El Paso, TX | UTEP/New Mexico State Tournament
Feb. 20 | 10:30 AM | Utah Valley | Las Vegas, NV | UNLV Tournament
Feb. 20 | 7:00 PM | Valparaiso | Las Vegas, NV | UNLV Tournament
Feb. 21 | 4:00 PM | UNLV | Las Vegas, NV | UNLV Tournament
Feb. 22 | 10:30 AM | Valparaiso | Las Vegas, NV | UNLV Tournament
Feb. 22 | 1:00 PM | Merrimack | Las Vegas, NV | UNLV Tournament
Feb. 27 | 1:30 PM | Samford | Eugene, OR | Oregon Tournament
Feb. 27 | 7:00 PM | Oregon | Eugene, OR | Oregon Tournament
Feb. 28 | 11:00 AM | Stetson | Eugene, OR | Oregon Tournament
Feb. 28 | 1:30 PM | Samford | Eugene, OR | Oregon Tournament
Mar. 1 | 11:00 AM | Stetson | Eugene, OR | Oregon Tournament
March
Mar. 5 | 12:30 PM | Southern Utah | Pocatello, ID | Idaho State Tournament
Mar. 5 | 3:00 PM | Southern Utah | Pocatello, ID | Idaho State Tournament
Mar. 6 | 1:00 PM | Southern Utah | Pocatello, ID | Idaho State Tournament
Mar. 6 | 3:30 PM | Maine | Pocatello, ID | Idaho State Tournament
Mar. 7 | 3:00 PM | Maine | Pocatello, ID | Idaho State Tournament
Mar. 8 | 10:00 AM | Maine | Pocatello, ID | Idaho State Tournament
Mar. 10 | TBA | Utah State | Logan, UT
Mar. 13 | 5:00 PM | San Diego | San Diego, CA | Big Sky/WCC
Mar. 13 | 7:00 PM | San Diego | San Diego, CA | Big Sky/WCC
Mar. 14 | 1:00 PM | San Diego | San Diego, CA | Big Sky/WCC
Mar. 17 | 4:00 PM | Utah State | Pocatello, ID
Mar. 19 | 1:00 PM | Oregon State | Pocatello, ID | Big Sky/WCC
Mar. 19 | 3:30 PM | Oregon State | Pocatello, ID | Big Sky/WCC
Mar. 20 | 1:00 PM | Oregon State | Pocatello, ID | Big Sky/WCC
Mar. 21 | 1:00 PM | Seattle | Pocatello, ID | Big Sky/WCC
Mar. 21 | 3:30 PM | Seattle | Pocatello, ID | Big Sky/WCC
Mar. 22 | 1:00 PM | Seattle | Pocatello, ID | Big Sky/WCC
Mar. 28 | 1:00 PM | Weber State | Pocatello, ID
Mar. 28 | 3:30 PM | Weber State | Pocatello, ID
Mar. 29 | 1:00 PM | Weber State | Pocatello, ID
April
Apr. 3 | 1:00 PM | Portland State | Pocatello, ID
Apr. 3 | 3:30 PM | Portland State | Pocatello, ID
Apr. 4 | 1:00 PM | Portland State | Pocatello, ID
Apr. 10 | 2:00 PM | Northern Colorado | Greeley, CO
Apr. 10 | 4:30 PM | Northern Colorado | Greeley, CO
Apr. 11 | 12:00 PM | Northern Colorado | Greeley, CO
Apr. 14 | 4:00 PM | Boise State | Pocatello, ID
Apr. 17 | 1:00 PM | Sacramento State | Pocatello, ID
Apr. 17 | 3:30 PM | Sacramento State | Pocatello, ID
Apr. 18 | TBA | Sacramento State | Pocatello, ID
Apr. 22 | 4:00 PM | Utah Valley | Pocatello, ID
Apr. 25 | 1:00 PM | Montana | Missoula, MT
Apr. 25 | 3:30 PM | Montana | Missoula, MT
Apr. 26 | 12:00 PM | Montana | Missoula, MT
May–June
May 4–7 | TBA | Big Sky Championship | Pocatello, ID
May 14–17 | TBA | NCAA Regionals | TBA
May 21–24 | TBA | NCAA Super Regionals | TBA
May 28–June 5 | TBA | Women's College World Series | Oklahoma City, OK
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