SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Coming off their best performance at the plate against Lipscomb, the Notre Dame Softball team faces its biggest challenge of the young season. The Irish head to Southern California to compete in the Judi Garman Classic, hosted by Cal State Fullerton. Notre Dame will face four ranked teams this weekend, two of them in top-five. The Irish are 1-0 this season against ranked teams (4-3 win over No. 15 Missouri).
Notre Dame opens the weekend tomorrow afternoon at 5:30 pm ET/2:30 pm CT against No. 4/4 UCLA before facing Cal State Fullerton in a prime time matchup at 10:30 p.m. ET/7:30 pm PT. The game against the Titans will be streamed live on ESPN+. On Friday, the Irish face No. 5/6 LSU at 3:00 pm ET/12:00 pm PT, followed by a clash with No. 23/23 San Diego State right after at 5:30 p.m. ET/2:30 pm PT. Notre Dame closes the weekend Saturday against No. 12/10 Arizona at 2:30 pm ET/11:30 PT.
For the Irish, 11 players will return to their home state of California – Rachel Allen, Addison Amaral, Paige Cowley, Rebecca Eckart, Caitlyn Early, Micaela Kastor, Alexis Laudenslager, Olivia Levitt, Tenley Sweet, Brianne Weiss and Mickey Winchell. Over half of Notre Dame’s roster is a California native.
Notre Dame is 8-7 on the season so far, coming off a 3-2 record at the Mardi Gras Classic in Mobile last weekend. Shannon Becker tossed the first no-hitter for Notre Dame in nearly three years against Maine, while the bats woke up in a big way in the 15-4 win over Lipscomb, scoring a season-high in runs and hits (19).
Judi Garman Classic Preview
No. 4/4 UCLA – Thursday, Feb. 27 at 5:30 pm ET/2:30 pm PT
UCLA is 14-2 on the season, seven of those wins coming against ranked teams. It’ll be the first matchup between the two schools since 2017.
Cal State Fullerton – Thursday, Feb. 27 at 10:30 pm ET/7:30 pm PT
Invite host Cal State Fullerton is 11-5 this year, coming off a 7-6 win over Utah last Saturday. Thursday night’s matchup will be the 18th all-time appearance between the two schools and the 10th time road matchup for the Irish against the Titans.
No. 5/6 LSU – Friday, Feb. 28 at 3:00 pm ET/12:00 pm PT
LSU is a perfect 14-0 this season, four of those in ranked games. The Irish and Tigers are 1-1 historically at neutral site matchups.
No. 23/23 San Diego State – Friday, Feb. 28 at 5:30 pm ET/2:30 pm PT
The Aztecs are 13-3 in 2025 and on a five-game winning streak entering the weekend. All-time, the series is tied 5-5…