College softball predictions for the rest of the 2021 season
Sixty-four teams will play for the national title in the 2021 DI softball championship. Of those 64 teams, 31 qualify automatically.
Six AQs will be awarded to the regular-season champions of the Big Ten, Big West, Mid-American, Mountain West, Pac-12, West Coast. The rest will be tournament champions. In the table below, click on the conference to find more information on the conference tournament or the bracket for the conference championship.
2021 NCAA Softball: Conference tournament brackets, automatic qualifiers
| CONFERENCE | LOCATION | DATES | CHAMPION |
|---|---|---|---|
| America East | Location of highest seed | May 13-15 | UMBC |
| American Athletic | Tulsa, Oklahoma | May 13-15 | Wichita State |
| ACC | Louisville, KY | May 12-15 | Duke |
| Atlantic Sun | Lynchburg, VA, Kennesaw GA | May 7-8/May 13-15 | Liberty |
| Atlantic 10 | Location of highest seed | May 13-15 | George Washington |
| Big East | Storrs, Conn. | May 13-15 | Villanova |
| Big Sky | Ogden, Utah | May 13-15 | Portland State |
| Big South | Boiling Springs, N.C. | May 13-15 | Campbell |
| Big Ten | No tournament | N/A | Michigan |
| Big 12 | Oklahoma City, Ok | May 14-15 | Oklahoma |
| Big West | No tournament | N/A | Long Beach State |
| Colonial | Harrisonburg, Va | May 12-15 | James Madison |
| Conference USA | Bowling Green, KY | May 12-15 | Western Kentucky |
| Horizon | Youngstown, Ohio | May 13-15 | UIC |
| Ivy | No tournament | N/A | No champion |
| Metro Atlantic | Location of highest seed | May 7-9 /May 13-16 | Manhattan |
| Mid-American | No tournament | N/A | Miami (OH) |
| Mid-Eastern | Norfolk, Va. | May 13-15 | Morgan State |
| Missouri Valley | Evansville, Ind. | May 12-15 | SIU |
| Mountain West | No tournament | N/A | Fresno State |
| Northeast | Location of highest seed | May 13-15 | Saint Francis |
| Ohio Valley | Oxford, Alabama | May 12-15 | Eastern Kentucky |
| Pac-12 | No Tournament | N/A | UCLA |
| Patriot | Boston, Ma | May 13-15 | Boston University |
| SEC | Tuscaloosa, Ala. | May 11-15 | Alabama |
| Southern | Location of highest seed | May 13-15 | UNCG |
| Southland | Hammond, La. | May 12-15 | McNeese |
| SWAC | Gulfport, Miss. | May 12-14 or 15 | Alabama State |
| Summit | Fargo, N.D. | May 12-15 | South Dakota State |
| Sun Belt (Bracket) | Troy, Al | May 11-15 | Louisiana |
| WAC (Bracket) | Seattle, Wa | May 13-15 | Seattle |
| West Coast | No Tournament | N/A | BYU |
NCAA Softball Tournament: Schedule
Here's the current schedule for the 64-team NCAA softball tournament.
- Selections: 9 p.m. ET on Sunday, May 16. Aired on ESPN2
- Regionals: Friday, May 21 through Sunday, May 23. Regional competition will be Thursday, May 20 through Saturday, May 22 for regionals that have a team with a no-competition-on-Sunday policy
- Super Regionals: Thursday, May 27 through Saturday, May 29 or Friday, May 28 through Sunday, May 30
- Women's College World Series: Thursday, June 3 through Wednesday, June 9
NCAA Softball: Champions, Women's College World Series winners
| YEAR | CHAMPION (RECORD) | COACH | SCORE | RUNNER-UP | SITE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | *UCLA (56-6) | Kelly Inouye-Perez | 5-4 | Oklahoma | Oklahoma City |
| 2018 | *Florida State (58-12) | Lonni Alameda | 8-3 | Washington | Oklahoma City |
| 2017 | *Oklahoma (61-9) | Patty Gasso | 5-4 | Florida | Oklahoma City |
| 2016 | Oklahoma (57-8) | Patty Gasso | 2-1 | Auburn | Oklahoma City |
| 2015 | Florida (60-7) | Tim Walton | 4-1 | Michigan | Oklahoma City |
| 2014 | *Florida (55-12) | Tim Walton | 6-3 | Alabama | Oklahoma City |
| 2013 | *Oklahoma (57-4) | Patty Gasso | 4-0 | Tennessee | Oklahoma City |
| 2012 | Alabama (60-8) | Patrick Murphy | 5-4 | Oklahoma | Oklahoma City |
| 2011 | *Arizona State (60-6) | Clint Myers | 7-2 | Florida | Oklahoma City |
| 2010 | *UCLA (50-11) | Kelly Inouye-Perez | 15-9 | Arizona | Oklahoma City |
| 2009 | Washington (51-12) | Heather Tarr | 3-2 | Florida | Oklahoma City |
| 2008 | *Arizona State (66-5) | Clint Myers | 11-0 | Texas A&M | Oklahoma City |
| 2007 | Arizona (50-14-1) | Mike Candrea | 5-0 | Tennessee | Oklahoma City |
| 2006 | Arizona (54-11) | Mike Candrea | 5-0 | Northwestern | Oklahoma City |
| 2005 | Michigan (65-7) | Carol Hutchins | 4-1 | UCLA | Oklahoma City |
| 2004 | UCLA (47-9) | Sue Enquist | 3-1 | California | Oklahoma City |
| 2003 | UCLA (54-7) | Sue Enquist | 1-0 | California | Oklahoma City |
| 2002 | California (56-19) | Diane Ninemire | 6-0 | Arizona | Oklahoma City |
| 2001 | *Arizona (65-4) | Mike Candrea | 1-0 | UCLA | Oklahoma City |
| 2000 | *Oklahoma (66-8) | Patty Gasso | 3-1 | UCLA | Oklahoma City |
| 1999 | *UCLA (63-6) | Sue Enquist | 3-2 | Washington | Oklahoma City |
| 1998 | Fresno State (52-11) | Margie Wright | 1-0 | Arizona | Oklahoma City |
| 1997 | Arizona (61-5) | Mike Candrea | 10-2 | UCLA | Oklahoma City |
| 1996 | *Arizona (58-9) | Mike Candrea | 6-4 | Washington | Columbus, Ga. |
| 1995 | *#UCLA (50-6) | Sharron Backus | 4-2 | Arizona | Oklahoma City |
| 1994 | *Arizona (64-3) | Mike Candrea | 2-0 | Cal State Northridge | Oklahoma City |
| 1993 | Arizona (44-8) | Mike Candrea | 1-0 | UCLA | Oklahoma City |
| 1992 | *UCLA (54-2) | Sharron Backus | 2-0 | Arizona | Oklahoma City |
| 1991 | Arizona (56-16) | Mike Candrea | 5-1 | UCLA | Oklahoma City |
| 1990 | UCLA (62-7) | Sharron Backus | 2-0 | Fresno State | Oklahoma City |
| 1989 | *UCLA (48-4) | Sharron Backus | 1-0 | Fresno State | Sunnyvale, Calif. |
| 1988 | UCLA (53-8) | Sharron Backus | 3-0 | Fresno State | Sunnyvale, Calif. |
| 1987 | Texas A&M (56-8) | Bob Brock | 4-1 | UCLA | Omaha, Neb. |
| 1986 | *Cal State Fullerton (57-9-1) | Judi Garman | 3-0 | Texas A&M | Omaha, Neb. |
| 1985 | UCLA (41-9) | Sharron Backus | 2-1 | Nebraska | Omaha, Neb. |
| 1984 | UCLA (45-6-1) | Sharron Backus | 1-0 | Texas A&M | Omaha, Neb. |
| 1983 | Texas A&M (41-11) | Bob Brock | 2-0 | Cal State Fullerton | Omaha, Neb. |
| 1982 | *UCLA (33-7-2) | Sharron Backus | 2-0 | Fresno State | Omaha, Neb. |
*Indicates undefeated teams in final series.
#-UCLA’s 1995 national championship was later vacated by the NCAA’s Committee on Infractions
