Texas Softball Receives Double Bye Heading Into SEC Tournament

The 2026 regular season has officially wrapped up for the Texas Longhorns, who will end their second year of action in the SEC with a 39-10 overall record and a 16-8 mark in conference. The Longhorns capped off the regular season by dropping their final conference series to the Arkansas Razorbacks, but salvaged a win in the last game of the series.

Texas now turns its attention to Lexington, Kentucky, for the SEC Tournament, which kicks off on Tuesday, May 5. However, for the Longhorns, their action in the SEC Tournament won't begin until Thursday, May 7, after earning one of the top four seeds and with that a double bye in the tournament.

Heading into the final weekend of the regular season, the Longhorns final seeding in the SEC Tournament remained in question. And the series loss to the Razorbacks didn't come back to haunt the Longhorns as they earned the No. 4 seed in the SEC Tournament and got a pass into the quarterfinals.

Who Could Texas Potentially Face?

Texas Longhorns utility Katie Stewart celebrates after hitting a home run in the fourth inning of a Women's College World Series. | BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

With the double-bye, the opponent for the Longhorns first action of the SEC Tournament is still to be determined; however, there is some clarity. The Longhorns won't take the field until Thursday, when they face off against either the South Carolina Gamecocks, Ole Miss Rebels, or Tennessee Lady Volunteers.

The Longhorns will find their opponent after the No. 12-seeded Gamecocks and No. 13-seeded Rebels battle in the first round of the SEC Tournament on Tuesday. The winner will be awaited by the No. 5 seed, the Lady Volunteers, on Wednesday in the second round. And the winner of that matchup will be facing the Longhorns on Thursday.

Here's a quick look at each team the Longhorns could potentially see with a trip to the semifinals of the SEC Tournament on the line.

The Gamecocks ended their 2026 regular season with a 30-25 overall record and a 7-17 record in conference play. South Carolina heads into the SEC Tournament looking to get back on track after being swept by the Alabama Crimson Tide in their final series of the year.

The Rebels will be heading to Lexington with a 32-23 overall record and a 6-18 record in the SEC. Unlike South Carolina, Ole Miss has a bit of momentum heading into the SEC Tournament with a ranked series win over the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

The Lady Vols will not take the field at the start of the tournament and will see their first action on Wednesday. Tennessee ended the regular season with a 42-9 record and a 16-8 record in conference play after ending the regular season with a series win on the road over the Missouri Tigers.

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