Millikin Awarded 2027 NCAA Division III Softball Championship Hosting Duties

INDIANAPOLIS, IND. – Millikin University was awarded hosting responsibilities for the NCAA Division III Softball National Championships in 2027, the national office announced Wednesday, October 2.

"We are extremely excited to be hosting the softball national tournament in 2027," Millikin Athletic Director, Craig White said. "When the Workman family made their generous donation, this was part of our plan and our hope. This is a credit to Millikin University and the city of Decatur. I especially want to recognize Sports Information Director Morgan Vogels for the extraordinary effort she put in to make this a reality."

The Workman Family Softball Field will serve as the venue for the NCAA Division III Softball Championships in May 2027.

Decatur has been the site of the NCAA Championships once before back in 1993. This will serve as only the fifth time that the state of Illinois has hosted NCAA Softball Championships, having also taken place in Elmhurst, Ill. in 1988 and will be held in Bloomington, Ill. by Illinois Wesleyan in May 2025.

"This wouldn't have been possible without Gary and Judy Workman and their family's support and vision of having the state-of-the-art softball facility built," said co-head softball coaches Katie Tenboer and Whitney Sowers. "We are proud to be able to represent the Millikin community on the national stage."

In the past three years, the Workman Family Softball Field has been the host of NCAA Championship events, including the six-team NCAA regional in 2021 and for regional and super-regional rounds in 2022 amid the Big Blue's run to the final eight in Salem, Va.

The Association chose over 240 host sites for preliminary and final rounds of predetermined championships across Divisions I, II and III, primarily for the 2026-27 and 2027-28 seasons. This cycle marked a shift from a four-year to a two-year site selection process.

The NCAA received more than 1,200 bids from member schools, conferences, cities and sports commissions across 47 states and Washington, D.C., all competing to host predetermined rounds for 87 of the NCAA's 90 championships. The respective NCAA sports committees selected the sites, with final approval from the divisional competition oversight and championships committees.

Forty states plus the District of Columbia were selected to host at least one NCAA championship event, with Florida garnering the most with 22. Pennsylvania and Texas are tied for second with 20, while California and North Carolina totaled 17.

The NCAA sports committees made the selections of host sites based on criteria that included the ability to create an outstanding experience for student-athletes, along with adherence to NCAA sport-specific bid specifications.

To view the entire list of upcoming host sites, click here.

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