KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The 2026 NAIA Softball National Tournament field has been set, with Eastern Oregon Mountaineers securing an at-large bid after earning a No.6 regular season National Ranking with a 38-11 overall (18-6 CCC) record, finishing the regular season as the Cascade Collegiate Conference runner-up. The Mountaineers will head to Mobile, Alabama for Opening Rounds with action beginning Monday, May 11th.

Eastern Oregon will travel to Mobile, Alabama as the No.2 seed. The Mountaineers will take on No. 3 Tigers of Campbellsville (Ky.), who received an at-large bid following a 31-17 record in the MidSouth Conference and finished third overall in the regular season. 

Eastern appeared in the NAIA Opening Rounds last season, securing their automatic berth by taking the Cascade Collegiate Conference Tournament Championship title. This will be the fifth year Eastern has appeared in the Opening Rounds, with three being under 7th year Head Coach Nicole Christian. Last year, the Mountaineers won their Opening Round bracket to advance to the final site. The Tigers return for their ninth appearance in the championship field. They hold a 12-17 Opening Round record, with one Opening Round Championship in 2015. 

Also in the Mobile bracket are No.1 seed and host Mobile (Ala.) out of the Southen States Athletic Conference, No. 4 seed Indiana Tech out of the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference, and No.5 seed Truett McConnell (Ga.) out of the Appalachian Athletic Conference. Mobile earned an At-Large host bid, Indiana Tech recived an automatic berth through a tournament runner-up finish, while Truett McConnell earned their automatic berth through a tournament championship. 

Host sites were selected by the NAIA National Office in consultation with the National Selection Committee. Selections were based on a combination of geography, facility quality, and host readiness. 

This year's Opening Round field includes 48 teams competing across 10 campus sites nationwide. Each Opening Round will feature a double-elimination format, with eight sites hosting five-team brackets and two sites hosting four-team brackets. The winner of each of the 10 brackets will punch their ticket to the 2026 NAIA Softball World Series, held at the South Commons Softball Complex beginning May 21.