Stanford Softball's Cardinal Classic I Relocated After Temporary Occupancy Permit Issue
The Stanford softball team opened its new stadium against Oklahoma State, San Jose State, and California just a few days ago, and it turns out, nobody should have been there.
The Cardinal went 5-0 in the Stanford Invitation to open the 2026 season, but failed to receive a temporary occupancy permit from the County of Santa Clara before welcoming fans through the gates.
That oversight has forced the program to make some changes.
Now, the Cardinal Classic I, which began on Thursday, has relocated to nearby schools, San Jose State University, Santa Clara University, and West Valley College.
This weekend’s Cardinal Classic I softball tournament, scheduled to be held at Stanford University from Feb. 12-15, will instead be moved to alternate locations due to finishing work that needs to be completed at the new Stanford Softball Stadium.https://t.co/6nW0sfY1nF
— Stanford Softball (@StanfordSball) February 13, 2026
"This weekend’s Cardinal Classic I softball tournament, scheduled to be held at Stanford University from Feb. 12-15, will instead be moved to alternate locations due to finishing work that needs to be completed at the new Stanford Softball Stadium," the university released in a statement late Thursday night.
"Stanford was not able to complete all of the finishing work necessary to receive a temporary occupancy permit from the County of Santa Clara before last weekend’s Stanford Invitational. Because the necessary permitting was not in place, the decision to proceed with the Invitational last weekend was made in error, and after review by university leadership, the decision has been made to move games from this weekend’s tournament to San Jose State University and Santa Clara University, along with West Valley College, which hosted two games on Thursday."
The university also issued an apology to fans, student-athletes and coaches who traveled to Stanford for the weekend's games.
Final. Back at it tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/sXVHK6gH8S
— Stanford Softball (@StanfordSball) February 13, 2026
"Stanford sincerely regrets the disruption and inconvenience to the student-athletes, coaches, and fans of all of the participating teams. We greatly appreciate the flexibility of these three local institutions in being able to accommodate these teams for competition this weekend.
"The university is working with the County planning department to address the remaining items at the new stadium as expeditiously as possible. We continue to look forward to an exciting season of play at the new Stanford Softball Stadium."
The Cardinal opened the weekend on Thursday with an 11-7 loss to Kentucky.
Updated Tournament Schedule
Friday, Feb. 13 (All times are Pacific)
9 a.m. Cal Stat Fullerton vs Oregon (Santa Clara)
7:30 p.m. Kentucky vs Stanford (San Jose State)
Saturday, Feb. 14
9:30 a.m. Cal State Fullerton vs Oregon (West Valley College)
12:00 p.m. Oregon vs Kentucky (West Valley College)
2:30 p.m. Cal State Fullerton vs Stanford (West Valley College)
Sunday, Feb. 15
12:00 p.m. Oregon vs Stanford (West Valley College)
-1d7db99dccc9abef7b9378f016b22b68.webp "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+.