Women's College World Series
From Iwe
| Women's College World Series | ||
| First played | 1982 | |
| Most recently played | 2019 | |
| Current champions | UCLA (Pac-12) | |
| Current runners-up | Washington (Big 12) | |
| Most titles | UCLA (Pac-12) (12-13) | |
The Women's College World Series (WCWS) is the final portion of the NCAA Division I Softball Championship for college softball in the United States. The tournament format consists of two four-team double-elimination brackets. The winners of each bracket then compete in a best-of-three series to determine the Division I WCWS National Champion. The WCWS takes place at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City. From 1969 to 1981, the women's collegiate softball championship was also known as the Women's College World Series and was promoted as such. During 1969–1979, the series was played in Omaha, after which the AIAW held the series in 1980–1982 in Norman, Oklahoma. There were two competing World Series tournaments in 1982. The NCAA held its first six Division I tournaments in Omaha in 1982–1987, followed by Sunnyvale, California in 1988–1989. The event has been held in Oklahoma City every year since then, except for 1996 in Columbus, Georgia when they wanted to show that it would be a good place for softball to be played during the 1996 Olympics.
Softball was one of twelve women's sports added to the NCAA championship program for the 1981–82 school year, as the NCAA engaged in battle with the AIAW for sole governance of women's collegiate sports. The AIAW continued to conduct its established championship program in the same twelve (and other) sports. The 1982 softball championship tournaments of both the AIAW and the NCAA were called "Women's College World Series." However, after a year of dual women's championships, the NCAA conquered the AIAW and usurped its authority and membership. Pac-12 schools have won 65% of the Championships since 1982, followed by the Big 12 with 10%, and the SEC, with 7.8%. (Texas A&M played in the Southwest when it won its 2 championships.)
The 2020 Women's College World Series was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Contents |
[edit] Division I
[edit] NCAA
| Season | Year | Champion | Title Series Score | Runner-up | Tie-3rd | Tie-5th | Tie-7th | |||
| 2016 | Oklahoma Big 12 | 3–2 7–11 (8 inn) 2–1 | Auburn SEC | Florida State ACC | LSU SEC | Michigan Big Ten | Georgia SEC | Alabama SEC | UCLA Pac-12 | |
| 2017 | 7-5 (17 inn) 5-4 | Florida SEC | Oregon Pac-12 | Washington Pac-12 | LSU SEC | UCLA Pac-12 | Baylor Big 12 | Texas A&M SEC | ||
| 2018 | 2018 | Florida State ACC | 1-0 8-3 | Washington Pac-12 | UCLA Pac-12 | Oklahoma Big 12 | Oregon Pac-12 | Florida SEC | Georgia SEC | Arizona State Pac-12 |
| 2019 | 2019 | UCLA Pac-12 | 16–3 5–4 | Oklahoma Big 12 | Alabama SEC | Washington Pac-12 | Arizona Pac-12 | Oklahoma State Big 12 | Florida SEC | Minnesota Big Ten |
| 2020 | No tournament due to the COVID-19 pandemic. | |||||||||
| 2021 | 2021 | Ongoing | ||||||||
* Nebraska's runner-up finish in 1985 was vacated by the NCAA.
** The 1995 title by UCLA and any related records have been vacated by the NCAA due to scholarship violations. Criticism also centered on UCLA player Tanya Harding who was recruited from Queensland, Australia midway through the 1995 season. After UCLA captured the NCAA National Championship, Harding, the MVP of the tournament, returned to her homeland without taking final exams or earning a single college credit. Despite not violating any formal rules in recruiting Harding, the incident generated heated criticism that some foreign athletes were little more than hired guns.
*** Beginning in 2005, a best-of-three series determines the national championship.
[edit] AIAW
From 1969–1972, the DGWS (forerunner organization of the AIAW) recognized the WCWS, organized by the Amateur Softball Association, as the collegiate championship tournament. The AIAW assumed responsibilities from DGWS in 1973.
| Year | Champion | Title Series Game Score(s) | Runner-up |
[edit] NCAA team titles by school
| School | Number | Year Won |
|---|---|---|
| UCLA | 11 | 1982, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2010 |
| Arizona | 8 | 1991, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2001, 2006, 2007 |
| Oklahoma | 4 | 2000, 2013, 2016, 2017 |
| Arizona State | 2 | 2008, 2011 |
| Texas A&M | 2 | 1983, 1987 |
| Florida | 2 | 2014, 2015 |
| Alabama | 1 | 2012 |
| Cal State Fullerton | 1 | 1986 |
| Fresno State | 1 | 1998 |
| Michigan | 1 | 2005 |
| Washington | 1 | 2009 |
| California | 1 | 2002 |
| *UCLA also won the 1995 title, but it has since been vacated by the NCAA; see above. | ||
[edit] AIAW team titles by school
From 1969–1972, the DGWS (forerunner organization of the AIAW) recognized the WCWS, organized by the Amateur Softball Association, as the collegiate championship tournament. The AIAW assumed responsibilities from DGWS in 1973.
| School | Championships | Years |
|---|
[edit] Championships & appearances by school
- Color coded by current conference; table is sortable
- Bold indicates team championship
| School | Championships (through 2017) | Title Games (through 2017) | WCWS Appearances (through 2017) | WCWS Appearances (through 2017) |
|---|
[edit] Championships & appearances by conference
This listing excludes results of the pre-NCAA Women's College World Series of 1969 through 1982 (both Division I tournaments in 1982—AIAW and NCAA—were called "Women's College World Series").
| Conference | Championships (Through 2017) | Title Game/Series Appearances (Through 2017) | WCWS Appearances (Through 2017) |
|---|
[edit] See also
- List of NCAA Division I softball programs
- Women's College World Series Most Outstanding Player
- College softball
- NCAA Division I Softball Championship
- NCAA Division II Softball Championship
- NCAA Division III Softball Championship
- AIAW Intercollegiate Women's Softball Champions
[edit] References
Template:NCAA Division I Women's College World Series Template:AIAW Women's College World Series Template:National Collegiate Athletic Association Template:Major women's sport leagues in North America
