2017 NCAA Division I softball tournament explained

Year:	2017
Teams:	64
Wcwsballpark:	ASA Hall of Fame Stadium
City:	Oklahoma City
Champions:	Oklahoma
Titlecount:	4th
Runner-Up:	Florida
Wcwscount:	8th
Coach:	Patty Gasso
Coachcount:	4th
Mop:	Shay Knighten
Mopteam:	Oklahoma

The 2017 NCAA Division I softball tournament was held from May 18 through June 7, 2017, as the final part of the 2017 NCAA Division I softball season. The 64 participating NCAA Division I college softball teams were selected out of an eligible 293 teams on May 14, 2017. Thirty-two teams were awarded automatic bids as champions of their conferences, and the remaining 32 were selected at-large by the NCAA Division I softball selection committee. The tournament culminated with eight teams playing in the 2017 Women's College World Series at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City. Oklahoma would repeat as National Champions, defeating Florida in 2 games and 17 innings in the first game. Oklahoma became the lowest seeded team to ever win the National Championship, winning as the 10 seed.^[1]

Automatic bids

The Big West, Mountain West, Pac-12, and West Coast Conference bids were awarded to the regular-season champion. All other conferences have the automatic bid go to the conference tournament winner.

Conference	School	Best finish	Reference
		Regionals (2005, 2006, 2007, 2011, 2014)
		Regionals (2006, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2014)	^[2]
		WCWS (1987, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 2002, 2004, 2014, 2016)	^[3]
		Regionals (2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016)
		Regionals (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016)	^[4]
		1st (2000, 2013, 2016)	^[5]
		WCWS (1999, 2000, 2005, 2007)	^[6]
		1st Appearance	^[7]
		Regionals (2013, 2015, 2016)	^[8]
		WCWS 1976, 1978	^[9]
		1st (1986)	^[10]
		Super Regionals (2016)	^[11]
		WCWS (1983, 1985, 1986)	^[12]
		WCWS (1994)	^[13]
		WCWS (1995, 1996)	^[14]
		WCWS (1990)	^[15]
		Regionals (2015)
		Regionals (1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2014, 2015, 2016)
		WCWS (1970, 1977, 1978, 1991)	^[16]
		Regionals (2013)	^[17]
		1st Appearance	^[18]
		Super Regionals (2009)	^[19]
		1st (1991, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2001, 2006, 2007)	^[20]
		Regionals (1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015)
		Regionals (2016)	^[21]
		1st Appearance	^[22]
		Regionals (1994, 2005, 2010, 2016)	^[23]
		Regionals (2014, 2015)	^[24]
		Super Regionals (2009)	^[25]
		WCWS (1993, 1995, 1996, 2003, 2008, 2014)	^[26]
		Regionals (2011, 2015)	^[27]
		Super Regionals (2010)	^[28]

National seeds

16 National Seeds were announced on the Selection Show Sunday, May 14 at 10 p.m. EDT on ESPN2. The 16 national seeds host the Regionals. Teams in italics advanced to Super Regionals. Teams in bold advance to Women's College World Series.1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7. Auburn
8.
9.
10. Oklahoma
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16. Alabama

Regionals and Super Regionals

The Regionals took place May 18–21. One regional, Salt Lake City, took place May 18–20 because of BYU's no-Sunday-play policy; all other regionals occurred May 19–21. The Super Regionals took place from May 25–28.

Tucson Super Regional

Women's College World Series

The Women's College World Series will be held June 1 through June 7, 2017, in Oklahoma City.

Participants

School	Conference	Record (conference)	Head coach	WCWS appearances† (including 2017 WCWS)	WCWS best finish†*	WCWS W–L record† (excluding 2017 WCWS)
		47–13 (16–8)		27 (last: 2016)	1st (1982, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990 1992, 1995*, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2010)	95–32
		56–9 (17–1)		11 (last: 2016)	1st (2000, 2013, 2016)	22–15
		55–8 (20–3)		8 (last: 2015)	1st (2014, 2015)	22–12
		52-6 (17-6)		5 (last: 2015)	3rd (2014)	4-8
		47–20 (12–12)		6 (last: 2016)	3rd (2001, 2004, 2015, 2016)	8–10
		47–11 (16–7)		8 (last: 2008)	1st (1983, 1987)	19–13
		48–13 (13–5)		4 (last: 2014)	3rd (2011, 2014)	5–6
		48–12 (16–8)		12 (last: 2013)	1st (2009)	19–17

† = From NCAA Division I Softball Championship Results

Bracket

Game results

Game	Time*	Matchup^#	Television	Attendance
Thursday, June 1
1	11:00 a.m.	(9) Texas A&M vs. (1) Florida	ESPN	8,428
2	1:30 p.m.	(5) UCLA vs. (13) LSU
3	6:00 p.m.	(6) Washington vs. (3) Oregon	ESPN2	8,874
4	8:30 p.m.	(10) Oklahoma vs. (15) Baylor
Friday, June 2
5	6:00 p.m.	(1) Florida vs. (13) LSU	ESPN	9,658
6	8:30 p.m.	(6) Washington vs. (10) Oklahoma
Saturday, June 3
7	11:00 a.m.	(9) Texas A&M vs. (5) UCLA	ESPN	8,696
8	1:30 p.m.	(3) Oregon vs. (15) Baylor
9	6:00 p.m.	(5) UCLA vs. (6) Washington	9,076
10	8:30 p.m.	(3) Oregon vs. (13) LSU
Sunday, June 4
11	12:00 p.m.	(1) Florida vs. (6) Washington	ESPN	9,419
12	2:30 p.m.	(10) Oklahoma vs. (3) Oregon
Monday, June 5
Finals, G1	6:00 p.m.	(1) Florida vs. (10) Oklahoma	ESPN	8,337
Tuesday, June 6
Finals, G2	7:00 p.m.	(1) Florida vs. (10) Oklahoma	ESPN	8,507
Game times in CDT. (#) – Rankings denote tournament seed.

Finals

Game 2

All-tournament Team

The following players were members of the Women's College World Series All-Tournament Team.

Position	Player	School
P		style=	Florida
		style=	Florida
		style=	Oklahoma
		style=	Oklahoma
IF	Shay Knighten (MOP)	style=	Oklahoma
		style=	Washington
	Mia Camuso	style=	Oregon
	Alexis Mack	style=	Oregon
OF		style=	Florida
	Justine McLean	style=	Florida
U		style=	Oklahoma
		style=	Florida

Record by conference

Conference	of Bids	Record	Win %
Big 12	4	23–10		<	-- Texas -->
SEC	13	39–27		<	-- Tennessee --><	-- Texas A&M --><	-- South Carolina -->
Pac-12	8	30–15		<	-- Washington -->
ACC	3	7–6
Big Ten	5	8–10		<	-- Michigan -->
American	1	2–2
Sun Belt	2	3–4
Big South	1	2–2
Big West	1	2–2
CAA	1	2–2
WCC	1	2–2
C-USA	3	3–6
MWC	2	2–4
Other	19	8–38

The columns RF, SR, WS, NS, F, and NC respectively stand for the Regional Finals, Super Regionals, College World Series Teams, National Semi-Finals, Finals, and National Champion.

Media coverage

Radio

Westwood One provided nationwide radio coverage of the championship series. It was streamed online at westwoodsports.com, through TuneIn, and on SiriusXM. Kevin Kugler and Leah Amico provided the call for Westwood One.

Television

ESPN holds exclusive rights to the tournament. They aired games across ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SEC Network, ESPN3 and Longhorn Network. For the first time in the history of the women's softball tournament ESPN covered every regional.

Broadcast assignments

Regionals^[29]

• Salt Lake: Alex Perlman & Megan Turk
• Gainesville: Melissa Lee & Lee Dakich
• Lexington: Jenn Hildreth & Carol Bruggeman
• Norman: Alex Loeb & Megan Willis
• Baton Rouge: Lyn Rollins & Yvette Girouard
• Knoxville: Lisa Byington & Jennie Ritter
• Auburn: Mark Neely & Jenny Dalton-Hill
• Tuscaloosa: Pam Ward & Cheri Kempf

Super Regionals^[30]

• Gainesville: Eric Collins & Amanda Scarborough
• Los Angeles: Beth Mowins, Jessica Mendoza, Michele Smith, & Holly Rowe
• Auburn: Mark Neely & Jenny Dalton-Hill
• Tallahassee: Jenn Hildreth & Carol Bruggeman

Women's College World Series^[31]

• Adam Amin, Amanda Scarborough, & Laura Rutledge (afternoons, early Fri)
• Beth Mowins, Jessica Mendoza, Michele Smith, & Holly Rowe (evenings minus early Fri)

Regionals

• Tallahassee: Eric Frede & Leah Amico
• Waco: Brenda VanLengen & Francesca Enea
• College Station: Tyler Denning & Erin Miller
• Oxford: Eric Collins & Amanda Scarborough
• Tucson: Dean Linke & Kenzie Fowler
• Eugene: Trey Bender & Danielle Lawrie
• Los Angeles: Tracy Warren & Amanda Freed
• Seattle: Beth Mowins & Michele Smith

Super Regionals

• Knoxville: Alex Loeb & Megan Willis
• Eugene: Trey Bender & Danielle Lawrie
• Tucson: Pam Ward & Cheri Kempf
• Seattle: Courtney Lyle & Lee Dakich

Women's College World Series Finals

• Beth Mowins, Jessica Mendoza, Michele Smith, & Holly Rowe

Notes and References

1. Web site: Oklahoma wins softball championship after sweeping Florida . NCAA.com . NCAA & TURNER SPORTS INTERACTIVE, INC . 14 May 2019.
2. Web site: Tulsa repeats as AAC Tournament champions, heads back to NCAA Tournament . . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017.
3. Web site: FSU softball captures fourth straight ACC crown . . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017.
4. Web site: USC Upstate wins third straight ASUN softball title . . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017.
5. Web site: OU blanks OSU to win Big 12 Tournament championship . . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017.
6. Web site: DePaul Powers Past St. John’s To Win BIG EAST Softball Championship . Big East . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017.
7. Web site: Griz softball wins first Big Sky Championship in program history . . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017.
8. THREE-PEAT! Longwood Wins Big South Championship . . May 14, 2017 . May 14, 2017 .
9. Web site: Gophers win second straight Big Ten softball tournament title . . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017.
10. Web site: Cal State Fullerton softball clinches Big West title . . May 5, 2017 . May 5, 2017.
11. Web site: JMU Softball Wins CAA Championship, Beats Hofstra 9–0 . . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017 . May 17, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170517124418/http://www.nbc29.com/story/35417135/jmu-softball-wins-caa-championship-beats-hofstra . dead .
12. Web site: Tech softball wins C-USA title, spot in NCAA regionals . . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017.
13. Web site: Flames Crowned 2017 Horizon League Champions . UIC athletics . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017.
14. Web site: Princeton Wins Back-to-Back Ivy Titles, Sweeps Harvard in ILCS . Ivy League . May 6, 2017 . May 6, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170623172435/http://ivyleaguesports.com/sports/sball/2016-17/releases/Princeton_Wins_Back-to-Back_Ivy_Titles-Sweeps_Harvard_in_ILCS . June 23, 2017 . dead . mdy-all .
15. Web site: Underdog Kent State wins three games in a row to take title . . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017.
16. Web site: Southern trips UNI for MVC tourney title . . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017.
17. Web site: Softball - 2017 Mountain West Champions!. SJSUSpartans.com. San Jose State University. May 12, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170517080326/http://www.sjsuspartans.com/sports/w-softbl/recaps/051217aab.html. May 17, 2017. May 20, 2019. live.
18. Web site: Flash Firsts: Saint Francis U Captures NEC Softball Title, Sets New NEC Wins Mark . NEC . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017.
19. Web site: JSU rallies to claim 2nd straight OVC tournament title . . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017.
20. Web site: Arizona Wildcats softball clinches 11th Pac-12 title with win over UCLA . . May 7, 2017 . May 7, 2017.
21. Web site: Ole Miss beats LSU for first SEC softball title . . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017.
22. Web site: ETSU softball wins first SoCon Championship . . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017 . May 16, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170516204412/http://wjhl.com/2017/05/13/etsu-softball-wins-first-socon-championship/ . dead .
23. Web site: Cowgirls back in NCAA tourney: Repeat as SLC champs, will learn destination tonight . American Press . May 14, 2017 . May 14, 2017 .
24. Web site: Lady Tigers win SWAC softball championship . TSU Sports . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017.
25. Web site: Bison Softball Wins Summit League Title . . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017.
26. Web site: UL-Lafayette wins second straight Sun Belt Conference softball tournament title . . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017.
27. Web site: New Mexico State wins WAC Tournament softball title . . May 13, 2017 . May 13, 2017.
28. Web site: Cougars clinch fourth-straight WCC title . . May 6, 2017 . May 6, 2017.
29. Web site: ESPN Covers Every Game from All 16 NCAA Division I Softball Championship Regionals For the First Time. ESPN Media Zone . 2017-05-15.
30. Web site: NCAA Division I Softball Championship: ESPN Televises All Eight Super Regionals. ESPN Media Zone . 2017-05-23.
31. Web site: ESPN Presents the Women’s College World Series from Oklahoma City. ESPN Media Zone . 2017-05-23.