March Madness isn't just for basketball—the NCAA Softball Tournament is shaping up to be a bracket-buster bonanza, and we've got our eyes on five unseeded teams ready to flip the script. Last season, four non-regional hosts crashed the Super Regionals party, proving that Cinderella stories are alive and well in the circle. With the 2026 tournament underway, the question isn't if an upset will happen—it's which team will be the next to shock the softball world.
From 2013 to 2019, no unseeded team made it to the Women's College World Series, but the tide has turned. Since 2021, six unseeded squads have punched their tickets to Oklahoma City, with Mississippi leading the charge last year by toppling No. 13 Arizona and No. 4 Arkansas. This season, the energy is electric—Arizona State blanked regional host Texas Tech 4-0 in the Big 12 Tournament title game, and then-No. 1 Oklahoma fell to Georgia in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals. If conference tournaments are any hint, regionals are about to get wild.
Think back to Louisiana-Lafayette and James Madison—recent Cinderella runs that had fans on their feet. Could 2026 be the year for another unseeded powerhouse? Here are our top upset predictions for teams that can shake up regionals:
Virginia Tech Hokies
The Hokies were one of the last teams snubbed from the top 16 seeds, and they're entering the Baton Rouge Regional with a chip on their shoulder. After falling to Florida State in the ACC Tournament final, Virginia Tech (46-10) is ready to prove the selection committee wrong. They're facing No. 16 LSU, the final national seed, and the ACC—often overlooked—has only two national seeds in FSU and Duke. But Virginia Tech's resume speaks volumes: wins over South Carolina, Georgia, and Duke, a lineup ranked fifth nationally in batting average (.355), and a pitching staff ranked 17th in ERA (2.64). The Hokies have the tools to make a deep run.
Arizona State Sun Devils
The Sun Devils already showed their teeth in the Big 12 Tournament, shutting out Texas Tech 4-0 to claim the title. With that momentum, Arizona State is a dark horse that can turn heads in regionals. Their pitching and timely hitting make them a threat to any host team.
Stay tuned—these unseeded squads are ready to rewrite the bracket. Whether you're rocking your team's gear or scouting the next upset, the 2026 NCAA Softball Tournament is shaping up to be one for the history books.