FIU Softball Announces 2026 Regular Season Schedule

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MIAMI, FL – On Friday, the 2026 FIU Softball schedule was released. Their schedule features 27 Conference USA games, three tournaments which they will host, and a road tournament in Gainesville, FL.

In-state rivals, FGCU, UCF, and Florida Atlantic, round out the non-conference schedule for FIU. These games will be midweek contests. Each CUSA matchup will be a three-game weekend series.

Felsberg Invitational, February 5-8

FIU will once again commence its season with the annual Felsberg Invitational on Felsberg Field at Baptist Health Stadium.

They will face Texas A&M-Corpus Christi for two games (February 5 & 6). Then, they will play Louisville (February 6), Stony Brook, and Lehigh on February 7, before closing out the weekend with another game against the Louisville Cardinals on February 8.

The TAMU-CC Islanders had a 12-36 record last year, going 4-16 in away contests. Louisville finished 26-25 and lost in the first round of the ACC Softball Championship.

The Seawolves of Stony Brook had a .500 season at 25-25 and are coming off two losses in the CAA Championship. Finally, the Lehigh Mountain Hawks went 28-24 before losing both of their contests in the Patriot League Tournament.

Gators Invitational, February 13-15

The Panthers will play their first road games at the Gators Invitational, hosted by the University of Florida.

FIU will play twice against Marshall (February 13 & 15) and Georgia Tech (February 13 & 14). They will also face Florida, which was a 2025 College World Series participant, on Valentine’s Day.

The Marshall Thundering Herd posted a 31-23 season but fell short in their only game of the Sun Belt Conference Softball Championship. The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets went 27-24 in the 2025 season, but their season was marred by a three-game losing streak in the NCAA Regional.

Meanwhile, the Florida Gators finished ranked No.7 in the nation with a 48-17 overall record. Despite exiting the SEC Tournament after one game, their 26-8 home record was no fluke. They swept the NCAA Regional and took two out of three games in the NCAA Super Regional. Ultimately, they lost twice in the Women’s College World Series.

SECURED OUR SPOT 🙌

📺 ESPN pic.twitter.com/uXiuEoKAkQ

— Gators Softball (@GatorsSB) May 25, 2025

Panther Invitational, February 20-22

FIU returns home to host their second tournament of the season, the Panther Invitational.

They have matchups against Florida A&M (February 20), Eastern Illinois (February 20), and Incarnate Word (February 21). These four teams will have the chance to face each other in round-robin format before the semifinals on February 21. The third-place game and finals will be played on February 22.

The Florida A&M Rattlers are coming off a 28-20 season in which they reached the SWAC Tournament Championship but lost their last game. The Panthers from Eastern Illinois went 34-22, winning the Ohio Valley Tournament, but then losing both of their games in the NCAA Tournament.

The Incarnate Word Cardinals finished last season with a 29-21 campaign and a run all the way to the Southland Conference Championship semifinals.

FIU Classic, February 27-29

The Panthers will stay for another weekend in the 305, running it back with their final tournament of the season, the FIU Classic.

FIU will play against Harvard (Feb. 27), Fordham (Feb. 27), and South Dakota (Feb. 28). The semifinals will take place on Saturday, February 28, while the third-place game and championship will be played on Sunday, March 1.

Last year, the Harvard Crimson finished second in the Ivy League with a 26-13 overall record and 15-6 conference record. The Fordham Rams went 30-26 before losing twice in the Atlantic 10 Championship finals. The South Dakota Coyotes finished 2025 with a 32-24 record and made a run all the way to the Summit League Tournament finals.

vs. FGCU, March 3

Last season, the FIU Panthers dismantled the Eagles on their home turf in Fort Myers, 12-3. Florida Gulf Coast went 29-30 with a 6-13 road record in 2025.

Bailey sent this to space ☄️ https://t.co/OUFXB2U58a pic.twitter.com/w2eVUFVLyq

— FIU Softball (@FIUSoftball) March 5, 2025

@ Delaware, March 6-8

FIU opens conference play by traveling up north to face CUSA Tournament host and newcomers, the Blue Hens. Delaware won the Coastal Athletic Association crown with a 38-16 campaign, including a 23-4 record in conference play. Their season ended with a loss in the semifinals of the CAA Championship.

vs. UTEP, March 13-15

The Panthers will play their first CUSA homestand of 2026 against the Miners, whom they got swept by last April in El Paso. UTEP is coming off a 22-28 season, during which they won just one single road game.

vs. UCF, March 18

Taking a brief pause on Conference USA play, the UCF Knights come into town. FIU lost 9-1 in five innings the last time they played in 2023. The Knights went 35-24-1 last year. They reached the 2025 Phillips 66 Big 12 Softball Championship semifinals and the NCAA Austin Regional final.

@ New Mexico State, March 20-22

FIU will take the trek to Las Cruces to face the Aggies. The Panthers won the series 2-1 in the 2025 season. New Mexico State had a mediocre season, going 27-27, but they did succeed at home, with an 18-7 record.

Can't script it any better than that 🔥🔥🔥 https://t.co/Tnxb8XrSiO pic.twitter.com/JOp2SHgPwa

— FIU Softball (@FIUSoftball) March 22, 2025

vs. Florida Atlantic, March 25, @ Florida Atlantic, April 15

The Panthers will face the FAU Owls both at home and on the road for the third consecutive season. Both teams took an even 1-1 split against each other last season. FAU finished with the best record in the American Athletics Conference, going 23-4 and 45-12 overall.

HEADS👏UP👏PLAY👏 pic.twitter.com/LjGw6lWrks

— FIU Softball (@FIUSoftball) April 2, 2025

Surprisingly, they were booted out of the AAC Tournament with a 1-0 loss in their only game. The Owls also lost two games in the NCAA Gainesville Regional.

vs. Jacksonville State, March 27-29

FIU lost the season series two games to one last March when they played the Gamecocks in Alabama. They will seek to win a series against Jax State for the first time in program history. The Gamecocks are coming off a 37-21 season and made a run to the CUSA Championship.

vs. Kennesaw State, April 2-4

The Panthers welcomed the Owls to Conference USA last season with a clean sweep against them on the road. This will be the first time in 2026 that they have back-to-back homestands against CUSA teams. Kennesaw State had a 2025 to forget, finishing last with a 12-41 record and a 3-24 mark in conference play.

Kennedy Byrd sealed last night's series opener with a strikeout to log her 8th complete game of the year 😤@kennedy_byrd12 https://t.co/yusCIjpG0Z pic.twitter.com/3NnVCoJ6Xi

— FIU Softball (@FIUSoftball) March 15, 2025

@ Louisiana Tech, April 10-12

After winning the season series last year, the Panthers will be hungry for more as they welcome the Bulldogs. In 2024, they also won the season series against them. LA Tech previously posted a 32-25 record and made it to the Conference USA quarterfinals.

Kally is just too good 😮‍💨 pic.twitter.com/XZBjUsLbK4

— FIU Softball (@FIUSoftball) April 12, 2025

vs. Liberty, April 17-19

For FIU, this will be their highly anticipated series of the 2026 season. Not only did they get swept by the #25 Flames last May, but they also went scoreless, getting outscored 20-0 in three games.

Liberty ran away with the CUSA title, going 50-14 and 23-3 against conference opponents. They won the championship 2-1 in 10 innings and reached the NCAA Super Regional of the NCAA Softball Championship.

vs. Sam Houston, April 24-26

The Panthers have lost two out of three games against the Bearkats for the past two seasons. Sam Houston went 28-29 last year and 8-13 in away games.

@ Middle Tennessee, April 30-May 2

FIU will close out the regular season in Murfreesboro against the Blue Raiders. The Panthers won two out of three games in last year’s meeting. Last season, MTSU went 26-27 but went 17-5 on its home turf.

BYE BALL 😤 @kendallrae03 https://t.co/VZ5YPBovuR pic.twitter.com/D5TazhPCUY

— FIU Softball (@FIUSoftball) March 8, 2025

Conference USA Tournament

The tournament will take place from May 6-9 in Newark, Delaware.

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