The High School State Softball Tournament is changing formats. On Friday, the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union announced that the state softball tournament will be a double elimination tournament starting in the summer of 2026.
In a statement released from the IGHSAU, “Anyone that has watched the Softball College World Series knows how exciting the double-elimination format is,” said IGHSAU Executive Director Erin Gerlich. “We are thrilled to bring that excitement to the State Softball Tournament. This format will be exciting for both teams and fans, and we are grateful to the city of Fort Dodge for committing to enhancing Rogers’ Park to make a double-elimination tournament possible.”
Ft. Dodge has committed to a multi-million dollar investment in improving the Harlan Rodgers Sports Complex which has been the home of the softball state tournament since 1970. The renovations will be spread over the next 5 years and include five championship fields, press box accommodations for those fields, additional parking areas and with various other changes to the Rogers’ Park infrastructure.
The state tournament will remain single elimination in 2025 and is played in five days. When it goes to double elimination, it will stay as a five day tournament but will be spread over five different fields. A formal schedule for the tournament has yet to be finalized, but all games leading up to the championship contests will continue to be streamed.
