BURNSVILLE, Minn. -  The 2026 NSIC Softball Tournament bracket has been set as regular season play concluded Sunday.   

The top ten teams in the final regular season standings will participate in the single-elimination tournament, which will be held May 6-9 at Bowden Field in Sioux Falls, South Dakota; hosted by Augustana University. 

Southwest Minnesota State (31-25) received the eighth seed with a 17-13 conference record. The Mustangs will face the ninth seeded Sioux Falls Cougars in the first round on Wednesday, May 6, at 2:30 p.m. The winner of Wednesday's contest will face Winona State on Thursday at 12:30 p.m.

The winner of the NSIC Softball Tournament will earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Central Region Tournament, played May 14-16. The 40-team NCAA Central Region is made up of teams from the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) and the Great American Conference (GAC). Automatic bids are awarded to the tournament champions from each conference with the final five spots awarded on an at-large basis.  
 
The NCAA softball selections will be announced on www.NCAA.com on Monday, May 11. The NCAA Championships are set for May 28 to June 3 at Frost Stadium at Warner Park, Chattanooga, Tennessee.