Sixty-four teams will play for the national title in the 2022 DI softball championship. Thirty-two of those teams will qualify automatically by winning their conference or conference tournament.
We’ll be tracking each of the automatic bids this spring. Four teams will earn a bid by winning their conference’s regular-season tournament. The others will be conference tournament champions. In the table below, click or tap on the conference to find more information on the conference tournament or the bracket for the conference championship.
2022 college softball: Conference tournament brackets, automatic qualifiers
| CONFERENCE | LOCATION | DATES | CHAMPION |
|---|---|---|---|
| America East | Vestal, NY | May 11-14 | TBD |
| American Athletic | Greenville, NC | May 12-14 | TBD |
| ACC | Pittsburgh, Penn. | May 11-14 | TBD |
| Atlantic Sun | Jacksonville, Fla. | May 10-14 | TBD |
| Atlantic 10 | Fairfax, Va. | May 11-14 | TBD |
| Big East | Rosemont, Ill. | May 12-14 | TBD |
| Big Sky | Ogden, Utah | May 11-14 | TBD |
| Big South | Farmville, Va. | May 11-14 | TBD |
| Big Ten | East Lansing, Mich. | May 11-14 | TBD |
| Big 12 | Oklahoma City, Okla. | May 12-14 | TBD |
| Big West | No tournament | N/A | TBD |
| Colonial | Elon, NC | May 12-14 | TBD |
| Conference USA | Denton, Texas | May 11-14 | TBD |
| Horizon | Highest seed that meets criteria | May 11-14 | TBD |
| Ivy | Site of team with best Ivy League record | May 13-14 | TBD |
| Metro Atlantic | Location of highest seed | May 11-14 | TBD |
| Mid-American | Highest seed hosts | May 12-14 | TBD |
| Mid-Eastern | Norfolk, Va. | May 11-14 | TBD |
| Missouri Valley | Springfield, Mo. | May 11-14 | TBD |
| Mountain West | No tournament | N/A | TBD |
| Northeast | Location of highest seed | May 12-14 | TBD |
| Ohio Valley | Oxford, Alabama | May 11-14 | TBD |
| Pac-12 | No tournament | N/A | TBD |
| Patriot | Top overall seed hosts | May 12-14 | TBD |
| SEC | Gainesville, Fla. | May 10-14 | TBD |
| Southern | Greensboro, N.C. | May 11-14 | TBD |
| Southland | Hammond, La. | May 10-13 | TBD |
| SWAC | Gulfport, Miss. | May 11-14 | TBD |
| Summit | Brookings, S.D. | May 11-14 | TBD |
| Sun Belt | Mobile, Ala. | May 10-14 | TBD |
| WAC | Huntsville, Texas | May 12-14 | TBD |
| West Coast | No Tournament | N/A | TBD |
NCAA softball championship schedule
Here’s the current schedule for the 64-team NCAA softball tournament.
- Selections: 7 p.m. ET Sunday, May 15, on ESPN2
- Regionals: Friday through Sunday, May 20-22
- Super Regionals: Thursday through Sunday, May 26-29
- Women’s College World Series: Thursday, June 2, through Thursday, June 9. Finals Game 3 will be Friday, June 10, if necessary.
NCAA Women’s College World Series winners
| Year | Champion (Record) | Coach | Score | Runner-Up | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Oklahoma (56-4) | Patty Gasso | 5-1 | Florida State | Oklahoma City |
| 2020 | Canceled due to Covid-19 | — | — | — | — |
| 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
