CIF Southern Section High School Softball Playoff Brackets, Divisions 1-8

Murrieta Mesa and Norco are the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds in Division 1, respectively.

Dos Pueblos takes on Rio Mesa in a 2026 CIF Southern Section softball battle. | Mike Bouffard

The CIF Southern Section revealed the 2026 high school softball playoff pairings Saturday morning, highlighted by the almighty Division 1 bracket which many consider to be the most talented and challenging prep softball tournament in the country.

Murrieta Mesa and Norco are the No. 1 and 2 seeds in Division 1, respectively. The 32-team bracket has no byes, making it jam-packed with talent and top-end programs.

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The softball playoffs will be an eight-divisional format, with 256 total teams entered. The single-elimination tournaments will open on Thursday, May 14th with first-round games in divisions 2, 4, 6, 8 and Friday, May 15th in divisions 1, 3, 5, 7.

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The championships will be held in Deanna Manning Stadium at Colonel Bill Barber Park in Irvine on Thursday, May 28 through Saturday, May 30. All games, apart from championship games, are scheduled to begin at 3:15 p.m. unless otherwise noted.

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All championship games will be livestreamed by the NFHS Network. This is the second year of using current regular season data in determining playoff groupings.

PLAYOFF BRACKETS

• DIVISION 1
• DIVISION 2
• DIVISION 3
• DIVISION 4
• DIVISION 5
• DIVISION 6
• DIVISION 7
• DIVISION 8

BREAKDOWN OF EACH DIVISION, 2025 CHAMPIONS

DIVISION 1 (32-Team Bracket, 32 Entries)
SEEDED TEAMS:
1. Murrieta Mesa (25-1), Southwestern League Champion
1. Norco (25-2), Big VIII League Champion
2. Fullerton (24-3), Empire League Champion
4. La Mirada (22-4), Gateway League Champion
AT-LARGE ENTRY: Canyon/Anaheim (Crestview), 16-12.
2025 FINAL: Norco 3, El Modena 0.

DIVISION 2 (32-Team Bracket, 32 Entries)
SEEDED TEAMS:
1. Bonita (20-8), Palomares League No. 3 Entry
2. Mater Dei (15-11), Trinity League At-Large Entry
3. Temescal Canyon (17-5), Mountain Pass League Champion
4. Poly/Long Beach (15-4), Moore League Runner-Up
AT-LARGE ENTRIES: Camarillo (Coastal Canyon), 14-9; Roosevelt (Big VIII), 15-13.
2025 FINAL: Los Alamitos 3, JSerra 0.

DIVISION 3 (32-Team Bracket, 32 Entries)
SEEDED TEAMS:
1. Paloma Valley (21-4), Sunbelt League Champion
2. Villa Park (14-14), Freeway League Co-Champion
3. Riverside Prep (23-4), Cross Valley League Champion
4. San Juan Hills (19-6-2), Sea View League Runner-Up
AT-LARGE ENTRY: Murrieta Valley (Southwestern), 13-10; Liberty (Ivy), 11-9; El Segundo
(Bay), 13-13.
2025 FINAL: Marina 8, Westlake 0.

DIVISION 4 (32-Team Bracket, 32 Entries)
SEEDED TEAMS:
1. St. Bonaventure (17-6-1), Tri-Valley League Champion
2. Orange Vista (14-10), Ivy League At-Large Entry
3. Rio Mesa (14-13-1), Channel League Co-Champion
4. Redlands East Valley (16-10-1), Citrus Belt League No. 3 Entry
AT-LARGE ENTRY: Harvard-Westlake (Mission), 10-10; Newbury Park (Marmonte), 15-12.
2025 FINAL: Poly/Long Beach 6, Warren 2.

DIVISION 5 (32-Team Bracket, 32 Entries)
SEEDED TEAMS:
1. Valencia/Valencia (11-10), Foothill League No. 4 Entry
2. Jurupa Hills (16-10), San Andreas League Champion
3. Northwood (10-7-1), Pacific Coast League No. 3 Entry
4. San Marcos (14-11), Channel League No. 4 Entry
AT-LARGE ENTRY: University (Pacific Coast), 14-9.
FREELANCE: Providence/Burbank, 18-4.
2025 FINAL: St. Bonaventure 8, West Ranch 7.

DIVISION 6 (32-Team Bracket, 32 Entries)
SEEDED TEAMS:
1. Duarte (14-10), Montview League Runner-Up
2. Santa Clara (13-7), Tri-Valley League No. 3 Entry
3. Irvine (11-16), Pacific Coast League Runner-Up
4. Sierra Vista (14-7), Montview League Champion
AT-LARGE ENTRY: Palm Desert (Desert Empire), 16-12; Academy of Academic Excellence
(Cross Valley), 12-9.
2025 FINAL: University 4, Rio Hondo Prep 1.

DIVISION 7 (32-Team Bracket, 32 Entries)
SEEDED TEAMS:
1. Garey (12-12), Montview League No. 3 Entry
2. Vasquez (12-10), Heritage League Co-Champion
3. Azusa (11-9), Montview League At-Large Entry
4. Ramona Convent (8-15), Camino Real League No. 3 Entry
AT-LARGE ENTRY: Chadwick (Prep), 9-7.
2025 FINAL: Rancho Mirage 7, Culver City 3.

DIVISION 8 (32-Team Bracket, 32 Entries)
SEEDED TEAMS:
1. Academy of Careers and Exploration (10-5), Agape League No. 3 Entry
2. Arroyo Valley (6-14), San Andreas League No. 3 Entry
3. Bell Gardens (7-14), Almont League No. 3 Entry
4. Cobalt Institute (9-7), Agape League Runner-Up
AT-LARGE ENTRY: Glendale (Pacific), 14-11; Fontana (Skyline), 11-11; Magnolia (Orange),
10-8.
2025 FINAL: Hueneme 1, Cathedral City 0.