CHICAGO — Wrigley Field will host a women’s college volleyball doubleheader to highlight the Big Ten/SEC Volleyball Challenge Week in September.

The conferences announced Monday that Nebraska will play Missouri and Penn State will meet Kentucky at the home of the Chicago Cubs on Sept. 6. Matchups between Big Ten and SEC programs will be played at home sites beginning Sept. 1.

“Big Ten/SEC Volleyball Challenge Week culminating at Wrigley Field brings together the highest level of women’s volleyball competition, at one of the most iconic venues in the country,” Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti said. “As women’s volleyball participation, sponsorship, attendance and viewership continue to grow, we look forward to providing this unique opportunity to showcase the exceptional competition.”

The matches will mark the first time volleyball has been played at Wrigley Field. Both outdoor matches will be broadcast live on Fox.

“Bringing the SEC and Big Ten together for a championship-caliber volleyball showcase, culminating at an iconic venue like Wrigley Field, reflects the extraordinary momentum of the sport,” SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said. “This initiative not only elevates volleyball on a national stage but also underscores a continued growth and investment in women’s athletics.”

Penn State has won eight national championships, most recently in 2024. Nebraska has won five titles, with the most recent in 2017. Kentucky won the 2020 championship and was runner-up to Texas A&M last season.

Nebraska hosted a women’s volleyball doubleheader at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln on Aug. 30, 2023, and attendance of 92,003 was the largest ever documented for a women’s sporting event in the world.

Romelu Lukaku is facing potential disciplinary action at Napoli after failing to return to training.

The striker pulled out of the Belgium squad for friendlies against the United States and Mexico in North America but headed back to his home country for treatment.

Lukaku has made only seven appearances this season, all of them as a substitute, after missing the first part of the campaign with a serious hamstring injury.

A Napoli statement on Tuesday afternoon read: “SSC Napoli can confirm that Romelu Lukaku did not respond to today’s call to return to training.

“The club reserves the right to consider taking the appropriate disciplinary action, as well as to determine whether the player will continue to train with the team for an indefinite period.”

Lukaku explained his decision to travel to Belgium in an Instagram post on Monday.

The 32-year-old former Chelsea and Manchester United forward, who joined Napoli in 2024, wrote: “The truth is the last few weeks I wasn’t feeling right physically and I had it checked out while I was in Belgium and it showed that there was an inflammation and liquid on my hip flexor muscle next to my scar tissue.

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“Since it is the second problem I had since coming back early November, I chose to do the rehab in Belgium.”

Lukaku insisted his future remains in Italy, adding: “I could never turn my back on Napoli, never. There’s nothing more I would love to do than play and win [for] my team.

“But right now I have to make sure I’m 100% physically cause I haven’t been recently and it took a toll mentally.”

Napoli sit third in the Serie A table, seven points behind leaders Inter Milan.

There was a big shakeup in this week’s top ten with Nebraska, Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Tennessee and UCLA all shuffling places. The Crimson Tide received a first-place vote in advance of their series against the team that received the most first-place votes, Texas. This will be an interesting week, with multiple ranked matchups in the SEC to go along with two in the ACC.

Player to watch

Alabama P Jocelyn Briski

Briski is a stunning 13-0 on the season with 113 strikeouts. Against Arkansas in mid March, she pitched two complete games with a combined 24 strikeouts. She’ll be a key factor in the Crimson Tide’s upcoming matchup against Texas.

Top moment

DAKOTA KENNEDY WALKS IT OFF FOR THE SERIES WIN 🤩#NCAASoftball x 🎥 SECN+ / @RazorbackSB

pic.twitter.com/2zshnObK0f

— NCAA Softball (@NCAASoftball) March 29, 2026

In a matchup between two top-ten teams, Arkansas outfielder Dakota Kennedy left her mark. The senior’s three-run walk-off home run against Florida helped the Razorbacks to a 2-1 series upset.

Series to watch

No. 1 Texas at No. 5 Alabama
Thursday at 7 p.m., SEC Network+
Friday at 8:30 p.m., SEC Network
Saturday at 6 p.m., ESPN

Both of these top-ten programs have just two losses on the season, and Texas is coming off a tough one against rival Texas A&M. Can Alabama put the Longhorns on their first losing streak of the season? Or will Texas regain its footing?

How to watch

Everything college softball on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SEC Network, ACC Network, Big 12 Now on ESPN+, ESPN3, ESPN+, SEC Network+ and ACCNX is accessible here, in addition to being available on the ESPN App.

What’s the full schedule?

You can check out the complete scoreboard here to stay up to date this spring.

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Week 8 Top 25

Here is the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 ranking, plus each team’s record and next game.
All times Eastern.

1. Texas

Previous rank: 1
Record: 31-2

Next game: Thursday at Alabama, 7 p.m., SEC Network+

2. Texas Tech

Previous rank: 2
Record: 34-2

Next game: Tuesday at Abilene Christian, 6 p.m., ESPN+

3. Oklahoma

Previous rank: 3
Record: 34-3

Next game: Tuesday vs. Wichita State, 6 p.m., SEC Network

4. Nebraska

Previous rank: 6
Record: 26-6

Next game: Tuesday at Creighton, 6 p.m., ESPN+

5. Alabama

Previous rank: 7
Record: 33-2

Next game: Thursday vs. Texas, 7 p.m., SEC Network+

6. Arkansas

Previous rank: 9
Record: 30-5

Next game: Saturday vs. Auburn, 5 p.m., SEC Network+

7. Florida

Previous rank: 5
Record: 33-4

Next game: Wednesday at Stetson, 6 p.m., ESPN+

8. Tennessee

Previous rank: 4
Record: 30-5

Next game: Thursday vs. South Carolina, 6 p.m., SEC Network+

9. UCLA

Previous rank: 8
Record: 29-5

Next game: Thursday vs. Hawaii, 6 p.m., Big Ten Plus

10. Florida State

Previous rank: 10
Record: 32-4

Next game: Thursday vs. Notre Dame, 6 p.m., ACC Extra

11. Georgia

Previous rank: 11
Record: 27-8

Next game: Thursday at Texas A&M, 7 p.m., SEC Network+

12. Virginia Tech

Previous rank: 12
Record: 31-4

Next game: Wednesday vs. Clemson, 6 p.m., ACC Extra

13. Arizona

Previous rank: 13
Record: 27-8

Next game: Thursday at Iowa State, 5 p.m., ESPN+

14. Washington

Previous rank: 16
Record: 30-6

Next game: Thursday at Saint Mary’s, 5 p.m.

15. Texas A&M

Previous rank: 15
Record: 24-11

Next game: Thursday vs. Georgia, 7 p.m., SEC Network+

16. Mississippi State

Previous rank: 14
Record: 32-7

Next game: Friday at Florida, 6 p.m., SEC Network+

17. Virginia

Previous rank: 18
Record: 31-3

Next game: Thursday at Duke, 6 p.m., ACC Extra

18. Oregon

Previous rank: 17
Record: 26-9

Next game: Friday vs. Iowa, 9 p.m.

19. Duke

Previous rank: 19
Record: 24-11

Next game: Tuesday vs. Campbell, 5 p.m., ACC Extra

20. LSU

Previous rank: 20
Record: 23-12

Next game: Thursday at Missouri, 7 p.m., SEC Network+

21. Oklahoma State

Previous rank: 21
Record: 25-10

Next game: April 8 at Wichita State, 7 p.m., ESPN+

22. Grand Canyon

Previous rank: 23
Record: 36-2

Next game: Thursday vs. Nevada, 10 p.m.

23. Arizona State

Previous rank: 25
Record: 28-9

Next game: Thursday at Kansas, 6 p.m., ESPN+

24. Stanford

Previous rank: 22
Record: 20-10

Next game: Wednesday vs. Washington, 8 p.m., ACC Extra

25. UCF

Previous rank: NR
Record: 28-10

Next game: Thursday vs. Utah, 6 p.m., ESPN+