What to Expect: Cascade's First Home Game

Portland hosted the Little League Softball World Series for more than twenty years. The region has produced Olympians, professionals, and college stars. But Portland has never had a professional softball team of its own. On June 18, 2026, that changed: the Portland Cascade won their inaugural home opener 3-0 against the OKC Spark, the other 2026 AUSL expansion team, behind a complete-game shutout from Sam Landry in front of a sellout crowd. Two new franchises. Two first-year rosters. One ballpark in Hillsboro. (This page was written as a preview ahead of that opener; the Cascade went on to finish their inaugural regular season 14-11 and reach the AUSL playoffs as the No. 3 seed.)

The Cascade arrived home after 6 road games, so it wasn't their first competitive game of the year. It was the first time their supporters got to watch them in person.

The Cascade played six road games before their fans saw them. That was a real advantage. By the time they walked out of the Hillsboro home dugout on June 18 they had played Carolina three times in Durham and Utah three times in Salt Lake City (sweeping the defending-champion Talons), and they knew exactly who they were as a roster. The home opener wasn't an orientation for this team. It was a statement, and they backed it up with a 3-0 win.

Hillsboro Ballpark seats roughly 6,000 fans. The footprint is intimate by design: the stands sit close to the action, the outfield is a single unbroken sweep, and there's none of the concrete-bowl distance you feel at a major league venue. This is good for softball, where the game is played on a smaller field than baseball and every play happens close to the stands.

Cascade home games at Hillsboro Ballpark bring pregame ceremony, full-roster introductions, and a first pitch from a local figure. The home opener on June 18 drew a sellout, and the Thorns and Fire crowds that have built Portland into a women's sports city show up for softball too.

Expect weather. Portland in mid-June is usually comfortable in the evening, but the game is outdoors. A light layer for a 6:00 PM first pitch is a good call if the sun is setting behind clouds by the middle innings.

The Cascade carry a 16-player active roster (the May 4, 2026 College Draft is complete). Active names to watch:

• Kelly Maxwell (#28, LHP) is the 2024 Women's College World Series Most Outstanding Player and #1 overall pick in the Allocation Draft. She helped Oklahoma win its fourth consecutive national championship in 2024 and won silver at the 2024 Women's Softball World Cup with Team USA.
• Sam Landry (#21, RHP) is the other Oklahoma Sooner in the rotation. She went 25-6 with a 1.94 ERA for the Sooners in 2025 and was the #1 overall pick in the 2025 AUSL amateur draft before Portland selected her in the Expansion Draft.
• Megan Grant (UTIL) holds the UCLA career home-run record with 91 and set the NCAA Division I single-season record with 42 in 2026. The power bat of the lineup.
• Sis Bates (#22, IF) is one of the most decorated defensive shortstops in college softball history. Three-time Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year at Washington.
• Korbe Otis (#3, OF) hit the first grand slam in franchise history. A Florida product who brings speed and pop to the outfield.

The Spark have their own roster story. Like the Cascade, they are a brand-new franchise playing their inaugural season. June 18 at Hillsboro was the first-ever home meeting between two 2026 expansion teams.

If your last ball game was a Hops night or an afternoon at T-Mobile Park, the pro softball experience will feel close but not identical. The differences that matter:

• The ball is larger and yellow. Circumference is 12 inches (vs about 9 for baseball). You'll see it clearly from every seat.
• Pitching is underhand, from 43 feet. That's about 17 feet closer than a baseball mound. Reaction time at the plate is compressed.
• The basepaths are 60 feet, not 90. Everything happens faster. A bunt, a single to the outfield, a close play at first — you'll feel the action more.
• Seven innings, not nine. Most games finish in about two hours. You'll be back in downtown Portland by around 9:00 PM if you took the MAX.

The game is tighter, quicker, and more action-dense than baseball. If you've never watched softball, the first thing you'll notice is how fast everything moves.

The easy option is driving: US-26 West, about 25 to 30 minutes from downtown Portland without traffic, with parking on-site. Expect a slower ride during the westbound afternoon commute, so leave by 5:00 PM for a 6:00 PM first pitch.

Transit works, with a catch. MAX Blue Line gets you to Hillsboro (Orenco Station is about 45 minutes from downtown), but the ballpark is more than two miles from the nearest MAX stop. Plan on a rideshare for the last leg. The Hillsboro Hops have run game-day shuttles from MAX in past seasons, so check for one before you go.

The Hillsboro Ballpark game day guide covers parking, food, seating, bag policy, and what to expect in full detail.

The Thorns have led the NWSL in attendance for ten of the league's thirteen seasons. The Fire passed 12,500 season ticket deposits in the days after their July 2025 brand reveal, before drafting a single player. Portland has proven, over and over, that it will show up for professional women's sports. The AUSL is the next league to find out.

June 18 was about more than one game. It was a test of whether the Portland women's sports audience extends to a third pro team, a third sport, in a different suburb, on a weeknight. The Cascade won it 3-0 and played 12 home games at Hillsboro in their first season. Our take: a third fanbase is how the case for Portland as Title Town gets another pillar, and year two is where it gets built.