2016 NCAA Division I softball tournament

The 2016 NCAA Division I softball tournament was held from May 20 through June 8, 2016 as the final part of the 2016 NCAA Division I softball season. The 64 NCAA Division I college softball teams were to be selected out of an eligible 293 teams on May 15, 2016. Thirty-two teams were awarded an automatic bid as champions of their conference, and thirty-two teams were selected at-large by the NCAA Division I softball selection committee. The tournament culminated with eight teams playing in the 2016 Women's College World Series at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City in which the Oklahoma Sooners were crowned the champions.

2016 NCAA Division I
softball tournament

Teams	64
Finals site	ASA Hall of Fame Stadium Oklahoma City
Champions	Oklahoma (3rd title)
Runner-up	Auburn (2nd WCWS Appearance)
Winning coach	Patty Gasso (3rd title)
MOP	Paige Parker (Oklahoma)
← 2015  NCAA Division I softball tournament 2017 →

Automatic bids

The Big 12, 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[1]
America East	Maine	Regionals (2004)	[2]
American	Tulsa	Regionals (2006, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014)	[3]
ACC	Florida State	WCWS (1987, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 2002, 2004, 2014)	[4]
A-10	Fordham	Regionals (2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015)	[5]
A-Sun	USC Upstate	Regionals (2013, 2014, 2015)	[6]
Big 12	Oklahoma	1st (2000), (2013)	[7]
Big East	Butler	1st Appearance	[8]
Big Sky	Weber State	Regionals (2015)	[9]
Big South	Longwood	Regionals (2013, 2015)	[10]
Big Ten	Minnesota	WCWS 1976, 1978	[11]
Big West	Cal State Fullerton	1st (1986)	[12]
Colonial	James Madison	Regionals (2009, 2013, 2014, 2015)	[13]
Conference USA	Florida Atlantic	Regionals (1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005)	[14]
Horizon League	Valparaiso	Regionals (2012, 2013)	[15]
Ivy League	Princeton	WCWS (1995), (1996)	[16]
MAC	Miami (OH)	Regionals (2005, 2009, 2012)	[17]
MAAC	Marist	Regionals (2006, 2013)	[18]
MEAC	Florida A&M	Regionals (1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2014, 2015)	[19]
MVC	Wichita State	Regionals (1989, 2005)	[20]
Mountain West	Fresno State	1st (1998)	[21]
Northeastern	LIU Brooklyn	Regionals (2008, 2012)	[22]
OVC	Jacksonville State	Super Regionals (2009)	[23]
Pac-12	Oregon	3rd (2014)	[24]
Patriot League	Boston University	Regionals (1996, 2002, 2003, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2014)	[25]
SEC	Auburn	4th (2015)	[26]
SoCon	Samford	1st Appearance	[27]
Southland	McNeese State	Regionals (1994, 2005, 2010)	[28]
SWAC	Alabama State	1st Appearance	[29]
Summit League	North Dakota State	Super Regionals (2009)	[30]
Sun Belt	Louisiana–Lafayette	WCWS (2008, 2014)	[31]
WAC	Cal State Bakersfield	1st Appearance	[32]
WCC	BYU	Super Regionals (2010)	[33]

National seeds

16 National Seeds were announced on the Selection Show Sunday, May 15 at 10 p.m. EDT on ESPNU. The 16 national seeds hosted the Regionals. Teams in italics advanced to Super Regionals. Teams in bold advanced to Women's College World Series.

1. Florida (53–5) 2. Michigan (46–5) 3. Oklahoma (47–7) 4. Auburn (49–9) 5. Oregon (44–8) 6. Alabama (46–12) 7. James Madison (46–4) 8. Florida State (48–8)

9. Kentucky (43–12) 10. LSU (45–15) 11. Washington (36–13) 12. UCLA (35–13–1) 13. Tennessee (41–14) 14. Louisiana–Lafayette (43–7) 15. Missouri (39–14) 16. Georgia (40–17)

Regionals and Super Regionals

The Regionals took place May 19–22. The Columbia regional took place May 19–21 because of BYU's no Sunday-play policy. All other regionals occurred May 20–22. The Super Regionals took place from May 26–29.

Gainesville Super Regional

	Round 1					Round 2					Regional Finals						Super Regionals
	1	Florida	11(5)
		Alabama State	0
						1	Florida	5
							UCF	0
		Florida Atlantic	0
		UCF	1
											1	Florida	8(5)	—
	Gainesville Regional
												UCF	0	—
		Alabama State	0
		Florida Atlantic	8
							UCF	2
							Florida Atlantic	1
																	1	Florida	0	2	—
																	16	Georgia	3	3	—
	16	Georgia	6
		Maine	0
						16	Georgia	5
							Northwestern	2
		Oklahoma State	1
		Northwestern	2
											16	Georgia	3	6
	Athens Regionals
												Oklahoma State	5	0
		Maine	1
		Oklahoma State	10
							Northwestern	2
							Oklahoma State	3

Tallahassee Super Regional

	Round 1					Round 2					Regional Finals						Super Regionals
	9	Kentucky	6
		Butler	1
						9	Kentucky	0
							Utah	3
		Illinois	0
		Utah	1
												Utah	0	5
	Lexington Regional
											9	Kentucky	4	3
		Butler	1
		Illinois	2
						9	Kentucky	3(8)
							Illinois	2
																		Utah	2	0	—
																	8	Florida State	6	3	—
	8	Florida State	1
		Florida A&M	0
						8	Florida State	4
							South Carolina	0
		South Florida	0
		South Carolina	2
											8	Florida State	2	—
	Tallahassee Regional
												South Carolina	1	—
		Florida A&M	4
		South Florida	6
							South Carolina	6
							South Florida	0

Eugene Super Regional

	Round 1					Round 2					Regional Finals						Super Regionals
	5	Oregon	8(5)
		Fordham	0
						5	Oregon	5
							Baylor	0
		Long Beach State	2
		Baylor	3
											5	Oregon	8	—
	Eugene Regional
												Baylor	1	—
		Fordham	1
		Long Beach State	9
							Baylor	11
							Long Beach State	2
																	5	Oregon	8	1	1
																	12	UCLA	1	2(9)	2
	12	UCLA	7
		Cal State Bakersfield	0
						12	UCLA	3
							Cal State Fullerton	2
		Cal State Fullerton	6
		Fresno State	4
											12	UCLA	5	—
	Los Angeles Regional
												Cal State Fullerton	4	—
		Cal State Bakersfield	5
		Fresno State	8
							Cal State Fullerton	7
							Fresno State	1

Auburn Super Regional

	Round 1					Round 2					Regional Finals						Super Regionals
	13	Tennessee	10(6)
		Marist	2
						13	Tennessee	0
							Arizona	4
		Ohio State	0
		Arizona	2
												Arizona	4(8)	—
	Knoxville Regional
											13	Tennessee	3	—
		Marist	1
		Ohio State	6
						13	Tennessee	10(5)
							Ohio State	1
																		Arizona	5	1	1
																	4	Auburn	3	4	6
	4	Auburn	2
		Jacksonville State	1
						4	Auburn	6
							USC Upstate	1
		Oregon State	2
		USC Upstate	5
											4	Auburn	14(5)	—
	Auburn Regional
												Jacksonville State	2	—
		Jacksonville State	5
		Oregon State	4
							USC Upstate	2
							Jacksonville State	3

Norman Super Regional

	Round 1					Round 2					Regional Finals						Super Regionals
	3	Oklahoma	7
		Wichita State	2
						3	Oklahoma	9
							Ole Miss	1
		Tulsa	1
		Ole Miss	5
											3	Oklahoma	3	—
	Norman Regional
												Ole Miss	0	—
		Wichita State	2
		Tulsa	1
							Ole Miss	4
							Wichita State	0
																	3	Oklahoma	8	7	—
																	14	Louisiana–Lafayette	2	6	—
	14	Louisiana–Lafayette	9
		Boston University	5
							Texas	1
						14	Louisiana–Lafayette	9
		Texas	5
		Texas A&M	0
											14	Louisiana–Lafayette	9(9)	—
	Lafayette Regional
												Texas A&M	8	—
		Texas A&M	6
		Boston University	0
							Texas	3
							Texas A&M	9

Tuscaloosa Super Regional

	Round 1					Round 2					Regional Finals						Super Regionals
	11	Washington	14(5)
		Weber State	6
						11	Washington	5
							Minnesota	2
		Minnesota	7
		North Dakota State	2
											11	Washington	15(6)	—
	Seattle Regional
												Minnesota	7	—
		Weber State	2
		North Dakota State	5
							Minnesota	7
							North Dakota State	5
																	11	Washington	1	2	—
																	6	Alabama	2(8)	5	—
	6	Alabama	3
		Samford	0
						6	Alabama	3
							California	1
		California	1
		Texas State	0
											6	Alabama	8	—
	Tuscaloosa Regional
												California	0	—
		Samford	0
		Texas State	2
							California	4
							Texas State	3

Harrisonburg Super Regional

	Round 1					Round 2					Regional Finals						Super Regionals
	7	James Madison	7
		Princeton	0
						7	James Madison	10
							North Carolina	1
		Longwood	4
		North Carolina	6
											7	James Madison	5	—
	Harrisonburg Regional
												Longwood	1	—
		Princeton	1
		Longwood	2
							North Carolina	4
							Longwood	5(9)
																	7	James Madison	3	0	2
																	10	LSU	2	2	3
	10	LSU	10(6)
		LIU Brooklyn	2
						10	LSU	4
							McNeese State	1
		Arizona State	2
		McNeese State	5
											10	LSU	2	—
	Baton Rouge Regional
												Arizona State	0	—
		LIU Brooklyn	0
		Arizona State	1
							McNeese State	2
							Arizona State	3(14)

Ann Arbor Super Regional

	Round 1					Round 2					Regional Finals						Super Regionals
	15	Missouri	9(5)
		BYU	0
						15	Missouri	8(6)
							Nebraska	0
		Nebraska	3
		Louisville	2
											15	Missouri	9(5)	—
	Columbia Regional
												Nebraska	0	—
		BYU	6
		Louisville	4
							Nebraska	2
							BYU	0
																	15	Missouri	3	4	—
																	2	Michigan	5	5	—
	2	Michigan	8(5)
		Valparaiso	0
						2	Michigan	6
							Miami (OH)	0
		Notre Dame	2
		Miami (OH)	3
											2	Michigan	6	—
	Ann Arbor Regional
												Notre Dame	2	—
		Valparaiso	0
		Notre Dame	8
							Miami (OH)	0
							Notre Dame	5

Women's College World Series

The Women's College World Series was held June 2 through June 8, 2016, in Oklahoma City.

Participants

School	Conference	Record (conference)	Head coach	WCWS appearances† (including 2016 WCWS)	WCWS best finish†*	WCWS W–L record† (excluding 2016 WCWS)
Alabama	SEC	51–14 (17–8)	Patrick Murphy	11 (last: 2015)	1st (2012)	17–19
Auburn	SEC	58–12 (16–7)	Clint Myers	2 (last: 2015)	3rd (2015)	2–2
Florida State	ACC	55–10 (21–2)	Lonni Alameda	9 (last: 2014)	3rd (2002)	6–15
Georgia	SEC	46–20 (12–12)	Lu Harris-Champer	3 (last: 2010)	3rd (2009, 2010)	4–4
LSU	SEC	52–18 (13–11)	Beth Torina	5 (last: 2015)	3rd (2004, 2015)	7–8
Michigan	Big-10	52–7 (21–2)	Carol Hutchins	12 (last: 2015)	1st (2005)	13–22
Oklahoma	Big-12	52–7 (17–1)	Patty Gasso	10 (last: 2014)	1st (2000, 2013)	17–14
UCLA	Pac-12	40–16–1 (16–5–1)	Kelly Inouye-Perez	26 (last: 2015)	1st (1982, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990 1992, 1995*, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2010)	95–30

Bracket

	First round					Second round					Semifinals						Finals
	16	Georgia	5
	8	Florida State	4
						16	Georgia	3
						4	Auburn	4
	4	Auburn	10
	12	UCLA	3
											4	Auburn	8(8)	—
											8	Florida State	7	—
	8	Florida State	8
	12	UCLA	4
						2	Michigan	0
						8	Florida State	1
																	4	Auburn	2	11(8)	1
																	3	Oklahoma	3	7	2
	3	Oklahoma	3(8)
	6	Alabama	0
						3	Oklahoma	7
						2	Michigan	5
	2	Michigan	2
	10	LSU	0
											3	Oklahoma	7	—
											10	LSU	3	—
	6	Alabama	4
	10	LSU	6
						16	Georgia	1
						10	LSU	4

Finals

National championship
Auburn	v.	Oklahoma

Game 1

June 6, 2016 – 7:00 p.m. (CDT) at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H	E
Auburn	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	2	4	0
Oklahoma	0	0	3	0	0	0	x	3	7	1
WP: Paige Parker (37–3)   LP: Lexi Davis (6–1) Home runs: AUB: Jade Rhodes OKLA: Sydney Romero Attendance: 8,171 Boxscore

Game 2

June 7, 2016 – 7:00 p.m. CDT at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	R	H	E
Oklahoma	1	6	0	0	0	0	0	0	7	10	2
Auburn	0	5	0	2	0	0	0	4	11	13	2
WP: Makayla Martin (15–3)   LP: Jayden Chestnut (9–1) Home runs: OKLA: Kady Self AUB: Whitney Jordan, Kasey Cooper, Emily Carosone Attendance: 8,409 Boxscore

Game 3

June 8, 2016 – 6:00 p.m. CDT at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H	E
Auburn	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	5	2
Oklahoma	2	0	0	0	0	0	x	2	5	1
WP: Paige Parker (38–3)   LP: Makayla Martin (15–4) Home runs: AUB: Jade Rhodes OKLA: None Attendance: 8,367

Record by conference

Conference	# of Bids	Record	Win %	RF	SR	WS	NS	CS	NC
Big 12	4	14–7	.667	3	1	1	1	1	1
Southeastern	11	41–22	.651	11	6	4	2	1	–
Atlantic Coast	4	8–7	.533	2	1	1	1	–	–
Pac-12	8	23–16	.590	7	5	1	–	–	–
Big Ten	6	12–10	.545	3	1	1	–	–	–
Sun Belt	2	4–4	.500	1	1	–	–	–	–
CAA	1	4–2	.667	1	1	–	–	–	–
American	3	3–7	.300	1	–	–	–	–	–
Big West	2	3–4	.429	1	–	–	–	–	–
Other	23	11–44	.200	2	–	–	–	–	–

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

Media coverage

Radio

Westwood One provided nationwide radio coverage of the championship series. It was streamed online at westwoodsports.com and through TuneIn. 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, and ESPNU. Select regionals and super-regionals were broadcast on additional ESPN stations like SEC Network, ESPN3, SEC Network Plus, and Longhorn Network. Any regionals not picked up by ESPN were streamed online by the host institution or broadcast by their television partners.

Broadcast assignments

Regionals Columbia: Pam Ward & Cheri Kempf Gainesville: Trey Bender & Jennie Ritter Tallahassee: Melissa Lee & Leah Ross Tuscaloosa: Cara Capuano & Leah Amico Knoxville: Beth Mowins & Michele Smith Auburn: Tiffany Greene & Jenny Dalton-Hill Lafayette: Adam Amin & Amanda Scarborough (ESPN Nets) Tyler Denning & Megan Willis (LHN) Norman: Jenn Hildreth & Carol Bruggeman Eugene: Mark Neely & Danielle Lawrie Athens: Kaleb Frady & Natalie Kerns Baton Rouge: Lyn Rollins & Yvette Girouard Lexington: Dave Baker & Dorian Craft (Fri) or Ginny Carroll (Sat/Sun) Ann Arbor: Lisa Byington & Stacey Phillips (BTN) Harrisonburg: Curt Dudley & Kim Fucci (Madizone HD SN) Seattle: Mike Brown (P12 WASH) Los Angeles- No commentary (P12 UCLA)

Super Regionals Gainesville: Trey Bender & Jennie Ritter Norman: Adam Amin & Amanda Scarborough Harrisonburg: Jenn Hildreth & Carol Bruggeman Tallahassee: Cara Capuano & Leah Amico Tuscaloosa: Beth Mowins, Michele Smith, & Jessica Mendoza Ann Arbor: Pam Ward & Cheri Kempf Auburn: Tiffany Greene & Jenny Dalton-Hill Eugene: Mark Neely & Danielle Lawrie Women's College World Series Adam Amin, Amanda Scarborough, & Laura Rutledge (afternoons) Beth Mowins, Jessica Mendoza, Michele Smith, & Holly Rowe (evenings & championship series)

References

1. "2016 Division I Softball conference championships, automatic qualifiers". NCAA.com. May 15, 2016.
2. "Maine softball team wins first conference title in 12 years". WCSH. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.^{[permanent dead link]}
3. "TU Shuts Out USF, Claims AAC Championship". News 9 Now / News on 6 Now. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
4. "Florida State softball wins ACC title". 247Sports.com. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
5. "Softball Wins Four in a Row to Clinch Fourth Straight Atlantic 10 Championship". Fordham Sports. May 15, 2016. Retrieved May 15, 2016.
6. "USC Upstate wins ASun softball championship". WYFF. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
7. "Oklahoma Softball Wins Fifth Consecutive Big 12 Title With Sweep Of Texas Tech". SB Nation. May 8, 2016. Retrieved May 8, 2016.
8. "Butler rallies in extra innings to win its first conference title". NCAA. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
9. "Whitmer, Kubo lead Weber State softball to Big Sky tourney title, NCAA bid". KSL-TV. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
10. "#WoodYouBelieve: Back-to-Back Champs!!!". Longwood Lancers. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 15, 2016.
11. "UM loses to Minnesota in 10 innings in Big Ten final". The Detroit News. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
12. "Titans claim Big West title, take series against Matadors". The Daily Titan. May 8, 2016. Retrieved May 8, 2016.
13. "JMU Softball Wins CAA Championship Beating Towson 8-0". WVIR-TV. May 13, 2016. Archived from the original on May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 13, 2016.
14. "Owls win Conference USA championship game over UAB". University Press. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
15. "Crusaders' Tournament Run Culminates With Walk-Off Championship game Win". Valparaiso. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 15, 2016.
16. "Princeton Wins First Softball Championship Series Since 2008". Ivy League. May 9, 2016. Archived from the original on June 17, 2016. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
17. "Bobcats fall to Miami in MAC softball final". The Athens Messenger. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
18. "MAy 14 Marist roundup: Softball team wins MAAC title". Times Herald-Record. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
19. "Rattlers bring down B-CU for third straight MEAC title". Tallahassee Democrat. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
20. "Wichita State Shockers Win MVC softball tournament Championship". KSNW. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
21. "Fresno State softball clinches MW title, NCAA bid". The Fresno Bee. May 1, 2016. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
22. "Long Island University - Official Athletics Website". Long Island University.
23. "Jacksonville State Wins OVC Softball Championship". WIAT. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
24. "Oregon Ducks softball wins fourth straight Pac-12 championship with 5-1 win over Utah Utes". The Register-Guard. May 13, 2016. Retrieved May 13, 2016.
25. "Boston U wins 2016 Patriot League Softball Championship". Campus Insiders. May 15, 2016. Retrieved May 15, 2016.
26. "Auburn wins back to back SEC softball tournament titles". Montgomery Advertiser. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
27. "Samford wins SOCON Softball Championship". WIAT. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
28. "BREAKING: McNeese State softball team Southland Conference champs". American Press. May 13, 2016. Archived from the original on May 15, 2016. Retrieved May 13, 2016.
29. "ASU wins SWAC softball championship". Montgomery Advertiser. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
30. "Bison Softball earns Summit League Tournament Championship". KVLY-TV. May 14, 2016. Archived from the original on May 26, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
31. "Aleah Craighton's grand slam caps Cajuns' dominant 12-0 victory over Texas State". The Advocate. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
32. "Larios HR in 7th powers CSUB softball into NCAA Tournament". The Bakersfield Californian. May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
33. "Bravo's 12th-inning RBI single helps BYU clinch WCC title". Deseret News. May 14, 2016. Archived from the original on May 15, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.