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Softball On SI

Nebraska, Omaha Turn Softball Game Into Celebration of State Pride

Nebraska is a softball state, too.
Maren Angus-Coombs|
Nebraska and Omaha played in front of 2,320 fan on Tuesday, April 22, 2026.
Nebraska and Omaha played in front of 2,320 fan on Tuesday, April 22, 2026. | Omaha Athletics

The gates at Omaha's Connie Claussen Field opened to the public at 4:45 p.m. on Tuesday, and people began sprinting to spread out blankets on the berms down both baselines.

By first pitch at 6 p.m., folks were turned away at the gate and opted for an adjacent hillside overlooking the field.

A single-game record of 2,320 witnessed a night of softball that represented more than the 11-4 score. It was a display of home state pride and showing the world that Nebraska is a softball state, too.

“You hear a lot of talk about Nebraska being a volleyball state,” Omaha head coach Mike Heard said after the game. “It is, but I think it’s a softball state, too.”

Nebraska head coach Rhonda Revelle echoed Heard's sentiments.

“I want to start and finish with the fact Nebraska is also a softball state,” she said. “I think that was evidenced tonight.”

Between the two teams, there were 23 Nebraska natives in the dugouts, and most of them were from the Greater Omaha area.

“I took a moment last night to just look around at all the little girls there,” Nebaska senior Jordy Frahm said. “And I'm like, ‘How cool that these girls get to watch this softball game, feel this environment, and watch two teams play loaded with Nebraska talent.’”

After Tuesday, the Mavericks also set a program single-season attendance record, drawing 10,706 fans in 11 home games. That total puts Omaha in the Top 50 of Division I in total attendance this season. The program also smashed its previous single-game record of 1,537, which was set against Nebraska in 2025.

The most impressive stat, however, is that the Mavericks have a higher attendance than eight teams in the ACC, all but two teams in the American, four teams in the Big 12, all Big EAST teams, and 11 Big Ten teams.

Looking ahead, Tuesday might not be the last matchup between the two programs.

Nebraska has done everything it needed to do to host an NCAA Regional and possibly be a national seed that could be hosting a Super Regional.

Omaha, which has an RPI of 39, is sitting in first place in the Summit League standings with five conference games to go. The likelihood of the Mavericks playing in the Lincoln Regional is high and becomes higher with a Summit League Tournament title.

There's also Creighton, a program that opened its new facility this year and has already hosted Nebraska in front of its own record-setting crowd. It welcomes Omaha across town on April 28.

The Bluejays are in second place in the Big EAST and have mathematically secured a berth to the conference tournament, which is only taking four teams.

If all three programs earn an NCAA Tournament berth, it would be another first since Omaha moved to Division I in 2011.

"It's really good when all three programs are good," Revelle added. "All three programs have a storied tradition, and we all have a good nucleus of Nebraskans on our roster. Every Nebraskan that can come into your program and help you win, it just intensifies the fan base. The out-of-state kids feel that pride, and they become pseudo-Nebraskans."

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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+.

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