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Durham Regional: Schedule & Updates

Get the latest schedule, matchups, and live updates from the Durham NCAA Softball Regional.
Maren Angus-Coombs, Nicole Reitz|
Duke is the No. 13 overall seed for the 2026 NCAA Softball Tournament.
Duke is the No. 13 overall seed for the 2026 NCAA Softball Tournament. | Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images

The Duke Blue Devils were named the No. 12 overall seed and earned hosting rights for the fifth time in program history.

Arizona, Howard and Marshall are the three other teams who will travel to Smith Family Stadium beginning Friday, May 15.

Friday, May 15

Game 1: Duke 10, Howard 1

D'Auna Jennings broke her own single-season hits record and the Duke Blue Devils used six home runs to route the Howard Bison on Friday afternoon.

The six long balls for the Blue Devils also set a new single-season record, smashing the 2022 team's total of 97.

Tyrina Jones and Gabriella Shadek hit two home runs apiece and Jennings drove in three runs.

Mallory Wheeler earned the win in the circle, allowing one earned run on four hits across 3.2 innings of work.

Game 2: Arizona 7, Marshall 5

Grace Jenkins homered twice and collected six RBIs for Arizona on Friday.

Sereniti Trice was 3-for-4 to lead the Wildcats in hits. She also scored two runs. Tayler Biehl and and Jenkins also scored twice for Arizona.

Marshall hit four home runs with Sydi Burko accounting for two of them. She finished the day 2-for-3 with two runs scored and two RBIs.

Jalen Adams got the win in her NCAA Tournament debut, throwing 5.1 innings and allowing four earned runs on six hits, two walks, and two strikeouts.

Saturday, May 16

Game 3: Arizona 10, Duke 1

The Wildcats upset the hosts with a run-rule victory in five innings. 

Defensive miscues from Duke’s ace Cassidy Curd allowed two unearned runs from Arizona to score in the first inning. Taylor Biehl bunted first, forcing Curd to throw a wild ball past first base, giving Reagan Shockey the ability to score all the way from first base. Grace Jenkins proceeded to hit a bobble to Curd, which she was unable once again to make a clean throw to first. 

Curd shrugged those errors off and went on to strike out seven, but the Blue Devils' bats didn’t provide much help behind her. KK Mathis stole home to give Duke its lone run of the day. 

Meanwhile, the Wildcats continued to add to their lead with a deep two-run homer from Tele Jennings. Curd was eventually taken out and replaced with Mathis, and a string of RBIs from Biehl, Jenkings, and Jennings added insurance runs. Jenna Sniffen then put the Wildcats in run-rule position with a three-run homer to deep left field. 

Game 4: Marshall 4, Howard 2

Syndi Burko certainly made up for her throwing error in the first inning that allowed the Bison to score first. Her two-run homer to left field tied up the game and kick-started action within Marshall’s lineup. 

Abby Darnley came through for the lead in the fourth inning when she absolutely hammered the ball over the left field wall for a two-run home run. 

Maddie Veal and Paige Maynard combined in the circle to end Howard’s season. 

Game 5: Duke vs. Marshall

A six-run second inning put the Blue Devils way ahead, and they didn’t look back after that. 

DAuna Jennings’ grand slam started the rally, and Jessica Oakland added a two-run shot, while Gabrielle Shadek ripped a three-run homer later in the fourth. Jennings and Aminah Vega also added RBIs and Tyrina Jones tripled to secure the run-rule victory. 

Marshall’s lone run came from a Paige Simpson RBI. 

Larissa Jacquez was awarded the win in the circle after going three innings with three strikeouts. 

Sunday, May 17

Game 6: Duke 8, Arizona 6

While trading runs nearly every inning, Duke’s long ball and a late two-RBI double from DiAuna Jennings were able to force the if-necessary game. 

Jessica Oakland’s solo homer off Jalen Adams in the first inning put the Blue Devils ahead, but two RBIs from Addison Duke and Regan Shockey quickly gave the Wildcats the lead. 

With a rocket called foul, Aminah Vega straightened up her swing and knocked a two-run shot to deep right field, reclaiming the lead for Duke. 

After Adams was taken off the mound and replaced with Jenae Berry, the Wildcats’ offense went ahead and got a hold of Duke’s ace, Cassidy Curd.  She walked in a run and allowed Kiki Escobar to produce a sacrifice fly for the insurance run. 

In a massive fourth inning, Kairi Rodriguez ripped a two-run homer to left field, and Jennings followed up with a 273 ft solo shot to take back the lead, again. 

Curd was taken out of the game after three innings, and Larissa Jacquez was put in for relief. A routine pop-fly to Oakland was ruined by the sun in her eyes, allowing two Arizona runs ot cross the plate. 

Still tied at six in the sixth inning, Jennings was the hero once again with a two-RBI double that kept Duke’s season alive. She ended the matchup just a triple shy of hitting for the cycle. 

Game 7 (if necessary) Duke 9, Arizona 4

With one last shot at saving the season and moving on to the Super Regionals, the Blue Devils’ bats came out on fire, and Larissa Jacquez threw nothing but gas in the circle. 

A Jessica Oakland sacrifice fly drove in the first run, while Kairi Rodriguez knocked in a solo home run, and Aminah Vega collected an RBI in the second inning. The Wildcats found a way on board with a pair of RBIs, but Vega, Layla Lamar, and Tyrina Jones added homers to put Duke in a safe position. 

Jacquez ended her outing with two strikeouts across four innings before Mallory Wheeler entered for relief. 

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Maren Angus-Coombs
MAREN ANGUS-COOMBS

Maren Angus-Coombs was born in Los Angeles and raised in Nashville, Tenn. She is a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University and has been a sports writer since 2008. She has been covering college softball since 2016 for various outlets including Softball America, ESPNW and Hurrdat Sports. She is currently the managing editor of Softball On SI and also serves as an analyst for Nebraska softball games on Nebraska Public Media and B1G+.

Nicole Reitz
NICOLE REITZ

Nicole Reitz graduated from Indiana University Indianapolis with a degree in sports journalism in 2022 and has been writing about softball and baseball since 2018 .Her work has been published in various publications like Softball America, the Indianapolis Star, and SoxOn35th.

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