Women's College World Series
The Women's College World Series (WCWS) is the final portion of the NCAA Division I softball tournament for college softball in the United States. The eight teams of the WCWS play a double-elimination tournament until just two teams remain. These two teams compete in a best-of-three series to determine the Division I WCWS National Champion. Previous WCWS losses do not factor into the best-of-three championship series, and the first team to win two of three games is declared the National Champion.
| Women's College World Series | |
|---|---|
| First played | 1969 (55 years ago) |
| Most recently played | 2024 |
| Current champion | Oklahoma |
Like the Men's College World Series in baseball, the WCWS initially divides the eight teams ranked one (the top seed) thru eight and are then divided into two brackets of four teams. The teams play their first-round match up as follows: 1 v 8, 2 v 7, 3 v 6 and 4 v 5. Unique to the WCWS is that the loser of the first-round game[clarification needed] on one side of the bracket crosses over to the loser's bracket on the other side. Suffering a second loss eliminates said team from the WCWS. Round number two will feature the four winners of round-one games against each other, with the highest remaining seed vs the lowest remaining undefeated seed. In the losers bracket, the four first round losers face each other, with the two winners advancing while the losers who suffer their second loss are eliminated from tourney play. Round three features the two losing teams from round two (winners bracket) vs round two-winners (from losers bracket) while the remaining two undefeated teams get a day of rest. Once round three is complete, there will now be four teams eliminated. The remaining four teams will then play each other in round four, with one team with one loss playing one team with no losses. If a team with a loss loses again, they are eliminated. If teams with no losses suffer a (first) loss, the remaining teams will then be realigned and forced to play one last time, with the winners advancing to the best-of-three championship series. If by chance one or both unbeaten teams win in round four, then that team (or both teams) advances to the best-of-three championship series. From there games are cut to one game per day over the next three days (weather pending). This feature allows any two of the eight WCWS teams to potentially comprise the final two, unlike the MCWS, whose two halves remain separate until the championship series.[1]
The WCWS takes place at Devon Park 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.[2] During 1969–1979, the series was played in Omaha, after which the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (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, when it was held at the softball venue for the '96 Olympic Games in Columbus, Georgia.
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 won out over the AIAW.[3]
Division I
editNCAA
edit* 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.[5][6]
*** Beginning in 2005, a best-of-three series determines the national championship.
AIAW
editFrom 1969 to 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[4] | Title series game score(s) | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1969 | John F. Kennedy College | 2–0 | Illinois State |
| 1970 | John F. Kennedy College | 0–2 7–6 |
Southwest Missouri State |
| 1971 | John F. Kennedy College | 6–0 4–0 |
Iowa State |
| 1972 | Arizona State | 0–1 8–5 (11 inn) |
Nihon University |
| 1973 | Arizona State | 0–4 4–3 (16 inn) |
Illinois State |
| 1974 | Southwest Missouri State | 14–7 | Northern Colorado |
| 1975 | Nebraska–Omaha | 1–11 6–4 |
Northern Iowa |
| 1976 | Michigan State | 3–0 | Northern Colorado |
| 1977 | Northern Iowa | 0–1 (9 inn) 7–0 |
Arizona |
| 1978 | UCLA | 3–0 | Northern Colorado |
| 1979 | Texas Woman's | 1–0 1–0 |
UCLA |
| 1980[a] | Utah State | 1–0 2–1 |
Indiana |
| 1981[b] | Utah State | 1–6 4–3 |
Cal State Fullerton |
| 1982 | Texas A&M | 4–1 5–3 (8 inn) |
Oklahoma State |
NCAA team titles by school
edit| Team | Number | Winning years |
|---|---|---|
| UCLA | 12 | 1982, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2010, 2019 |
| Arizona | 8 | 1991, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2001, 2006, 2007 |
| Oklahoma | 8 | 2000, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 |
| Arizona State | 2 | 2008, 2011 |
| Florida | 2 | 2014, 2015 |
| Texas A&M | 2 | 1983, 1987 |
| Alabama | 1 | 2012 |
| Cal State Fullerton | 1 | 1986 |
| California | 1 | 2002 |
| Florida State | 1 | 2018 |
| Fresno State | 1 | 1998 |
| Michigan | 1 | 2005 |
| Washington | 1 | 2009 |
*UCLA also won the 1995 title, but it has since been vacated by the NCAA; see above.
AIAW team titles by school
editFrom 1969 to 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[4] | Years |
|---|---|---|
| John F. Kennedy College (Nebraska) | 3 | 1969, 1970, 1971 (all DGWS) |
| Arizona State | 2 | 1972 (DGWS), 1973 |
| Utah State | 2 | 1980, 1981 |
| Florida State | 2 | 1981, 1982 (both slow pitch) |
| (Southwest) Missouri State | 1 | 1974 |
| Nebraska–Omaha | 1 | 1975 |
| Michigan State | 1 | 1976 |
| Northern Iowa | 1 | 1977 |
| UCLA | 1 | 1978 |
| Texas Woman's | 1 | 1979 |
| Texas A&M | 1 | 1982 |
Championships & appearances by school
edit- Color coded by current conference.
- Bold indicates team championship.
- Teams are listed under their current athletic brand names.
| School | Championships[4] (through 2024) |
Title games/series (through 2024) |
WCWS appearances (through 2024) |
WCWS appearances (through 2024) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UCLA‡ | 13 | 22 | 35 | 1978, 1979, 1981, 1982,[a] 1983, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2024 |
| Arizona | 8 | 14 | 29 | 1974, 1975, 1977, 1979, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2019, 2021, 2022 |
| Oklahoma | 8 | 10 | 21 | 1975, 1980, 1981, 1982,[b] 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 |
| Arizona State | 4 | 4 | 19 | 1971, 1972, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1982,[a] 1987, 1999, 2002, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2018 |
| Oklahoma State | 0 | 1 | 16 | 1977, 1980, 1981, 1982,[b] 1982,[a] 1989, 1990, 1993, 1994, 1998, 2011, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 |
| Washington | 1 | 4 | 15 | 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2023 |
| California | 1 | 3 | 15 | 1980, 1981, 1982,[b] 1986, 1992, 1996, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2011, 2012 |
| Alabama | 1 | 2 | 15 | 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2023, 2024 |
| Michigan | 1 | 2 | 13 | 1982,[b] 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2009, 2013, 2015, 2016 |
| Florida | 2 | 5 | 12 | 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2022, 2024 |
| Florida State | 1 | 3 | 12 | 1987, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 2002, 2004, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2021, 2023 |
| Fresno State | 1 | 5 | 12 | 1982,[a] 1984, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1997, 1998, 1999 |
| Texas A&M | 3 | 6 | 12 | 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982,[b] 1983, 1984, 1986, 1987, 1988, 2007, 2008, 2017 |
| Northern Colorado | 0 | 3 | 11 | 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979 |
| South Carolina | 0 | 0 | 11 | 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1989, 1997 |
| Missouri State[c] | 1 | 2 | 10 | 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1982[b] |
| Omaha[d] | 1 | 1 | 10 | 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979 |
| Nebraska‡ | 0 | 0 | 9 | 1970, 1971, 1982,[a] 1984, 1987, 1988, 1998, 2002, 2013 |
| Cal State Fullerton | 1 | 3 | 8 | 1980, 1981, 1982,[a] 1983, 1985, 1986 1987, 1995 |
| Illinois State | 0 | 2 | 8 | 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1976, 1978, 1981 |
| Western Illinois | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1970, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1982[b] |
| Oregon | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1976, 1980, 1989, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018 |
| Tennessee | 0 | 2 | 8 | 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2023 |
| Missouri | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1981, 1983, 1991, 1994, 2009, 2010, 2011 |
| Cal Poly Pomona | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1978, 1979, 1980, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1989 |
| Texas | 0 | 2 | 7 | 1998, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2013, 2022, 2024 |
| Kansas | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1992 |
| Michigan State | 1 | 1 | 6 | 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1981 |
| Louisiana | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1993, 1995, 1996, 2003, 2008, 2014 |
| LSU | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2001, 2004, 2012, 2015, 2016, 2017 |
| Utah | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1976, 1982,[b] 1985, 1991, 1994, 2023 |
| Northwestern | 0 | 1 | 6 | 1984, 1985, 1986, 2006, 2007, 2022 |
| UMass | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1974, 1978, 1980, 1992, 1997, 1998 |
| Long Beach State | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1986, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993 |
| Creighton | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1969, 1980, 1981, 1982,[a] 1986 |
| Georgia | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2009, 2010, 2016, 2018, 2021 |
| Oregon State | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1977, 1978, 1979, 2006, 2022 |
| Wayne State (NE) | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974 |
| Utah State | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1978, 1980, 1981, 1984 |
| Northern Iowa | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1973, 1975, 1976, 1977 |
| Baylor | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2007, 2011, 2014, 2017 |
| Indiana | 0 | 1 | 4 | 1979, 1980, 1983, 1986 |
| DePaul | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1999, 2000, 2005, 2007 |
| Iowa | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1995, 1996, 1997, 2001 |
| Southern Illinois[e] | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1970, 1971, 1977, 1978 |
| South Dakota State | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974 |
| Stanford | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2001, 2004, 2023, 2024 |
| Luther (IA) | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1970, 1971, 1972, 1974 |
| John F. Kennedy (NE) | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1969, 1970, 1971 |
| Texas Woman's | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1975, 1978, 1979 |
| Minnesota | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1976, 1978, 2019 |
| Louisiana Tech | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1983, 1985, 1986 |
| Adelphi | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1984, 1985, 1988 |
| UNLV | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1990, 1991, 1995 |
| Western Michigan | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1980, 1981, 1982[a] |
| Nebraska–Kearney[f] | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1969, 1970, 1971 |
| Minot State | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1970, 1971, 1972 |
| Emporia State | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1971, 1972, 1979 |
| Weber State | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1973, 1974, 1975 |
| North Dakota State | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1973, 1974, 1975 |
| Iowa State | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1971, 1973 |
| Cal State Northridge | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1993, 1994 |
| Princeton | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1995, 1996 |
| Southern Miss | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1999, 2000 |
| Central Michigan | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1982,[b] 1987 |
| Minnesota–Duluth | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1970, 1971 |
| Midland Lutheran (NE) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1970, 1971 |
| New Mexico | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1980, 1981 |
| Rutgers | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1979, 1981 |
| Concordia (NE) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1970, 1971 |
| Upper Iowa | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1970, 1971 |
| Eastern Illinois | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1971, 1974 |
| Central Missouri | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1971, 1972 |
| Ball State | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1973, 1975 |
| Indiana State | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1974, 1976 |
| East Stroudsburg | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1975, 1976 |
| Northern State | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1975, 1976 |
| UT Arlington | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1976, 1977 |
| Sacramento State | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1976, 1977 |
| Auburn | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2015, 2016 |
| Duke | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2024 |
| Hawaii | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2010 |
| James Madison | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2021 |
| Kent State | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1990 |
| Kentucky | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2014 |
| Northern Illinois | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1988 |
| Pacific[g] | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1983 |
| South Florida | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2012 |
| Toledo | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1989 |
| UConn | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1993 |
| UIC | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1994 |
| Virginia Tech | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2008 |
| St. Petersburg Junior College (FL) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1969 |
| Black Hills State (SD) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1969 |
| Midwestern (IA) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1970 |
| Parsons (IA) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1971 |
| Wartburg (IA) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1971 |
| Wisconsin–Eau Claire[h] | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1971 |
| South Dakota | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1971 |
| Southwest Baptist (MO) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1971 |
| Buena Vista (IA) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1971 |
| Simpson (IA) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1971 |
| University of Tokyo–Nihon | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1972 |
| Keene State | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1972 |
| Purdue | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1972 |
| West Georgia | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1974 |
| Golden West College (CA) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1974 |
| Winona State | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1974 |
| Nassau Community College (NY) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1974 |
| Western Oregon[i] | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1975 |
| Northwest Missouri State | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1975 |
| Ohio | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1975 |
| Minnesota State[j] | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1975 |
| Tarkio (MO) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1976 |
| Northwestern Oklahoma State | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1976 |
| Mayville State (ND) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1976 |
| West Chester (PA) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1977 |
| Springfield (MA) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1977 |
| Portland State | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1978 |
| Stephen F. Austin | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1978 |
| Chapman (CA) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1979 |
| New Mexico State | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1981 |
| Ohio State | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1982[b] |
| Rhode Island | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1982[b] |
| U.S. International (CA)[k] | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1982[b] |
‡ UCLA's 1995 NCAA championship and Nebraska's 1985 runner-up finish were vacated by the NCAA and are not counted
- ^ a b c d e f g h NCAA WCWS participant in 1982, when both the AIAW and NCAA conducted championships with the same name
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l AIAW WCWS participant in 1982, when both the AIAW and NCAA conducted championships with the same name
- ^ All appearances to date made as Southwest Missouri State.
- ^ All appearances to date made as Nebraska–Omaha.
- ^ The NCAA uses "Southern Illinois" strictly to refer to the university's main campus in Carbondale. The Edwardsville campus is referred to as either "SIU Edwardsville" or "SIUE".
- ^ Made all appearances as Kearney State.
- ^ This is the Division I institution in California, in full the University of the Pacific. The Division III institution in Oregon named Pacific University is referred to as "Pacific (OR)".
- ^ Made only appearance as Wisconsin State University–Eau Claire.
- ^ Made only appearance as Oregon College of Education.
- ^ Made only appearance as Mankato State.
- ^ Now known as Alliant International; no longer sponsors athletics.
Championships and appearances by conference
editThis 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 2024) |
Title Game/Series Appearances (Through 2024) |
WCWS appearances (Through 2024) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pac-12[c 1] | 24 | 39 | 99 |
| SEC | 3 | 10 | 51 |
| Big 12 | 8 | 11 | 43 |
| Big Ten | 1 | 3 | 25 |
| Big West[c 2] | 1 | 4 | 19 |
| ACC | 1 | 3 | 13 |
| Big Eight[c 3] [c 4] | 12 | ||
| WAC[c 5] | 1 | 2 | 11 |
| Atlantic 10 | 6 | ||
| Southwest[c 6] [c 4] | 2 | 4 | 5 |
| Conference USA[c 7] | 5 | ||
| Sun Belt | 6 | ||
| CCAA | 4 | ||
| MAC | 4 | ||
| Metro[c 7][c 4] | 4 | ||
| Southland | 3 | ||
| Big East[c 8] | 3 | ||
| Ivy | 2 | ||
| Missouri Valley[c 9] | 2 | ||
| CAA | 1 | ||
| Independent | 1 | ||
| Summit League[c 10] | 1 | ||
| NorPac[c 11] [c 4] | 1 | 3 | |
| North Star[c 12] [c 4] | 1 | ||
| WCAA[c 13] [c 4] | 3 | 3 | 6 |
Championships coaches
editUpdated through 2024 World Series
Source:[7]
| Coach | NCAA Championships (Through 2024) |
Title Game/Series Appearances (Through 2024) |
WCWS appearances (Through 2024) |
Schools |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mike Candrea | 8 (1991, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2001, 2006, 2007) | 13 | 23 | Arizona |
| Patty Gasso | 8 (2000, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024) | 10 | 17 | Oklahoma |
| Sharron Backus | 7 (1982, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992) | 12 | 14 | UCLA |
| Sue Enquist[c 14] | 6 (1989, 1990, 1992, 1999, 2003, 2004) | 13 | 16 | UCLA |
| Bob Brock | 2 (1983, 1987) | 4 | 5 | Texas A&M |
| Clint Myers | 2 (2008, 2011) | 3 | 9 | Arizona State, Auburn |
| Kelly Inouye-Perez | 2 (2010, 2019) | 2 | 9 | UCLA |
| Tim Walton | 2 (2014, 2015) | 3 | 11 | Florida |
| Lonni Alameda | 1 (2018) | 3 | 5 | Florida State |
| Judi Garman | 1 (1986) | 1 | 6 | Cal State Fullerton |
| Carol Hutchins | 1 (2005) | 2 | 12 | Michigan |
| Patrick Murphy | 1 (2012) | 2 | 14 | Alabama |
| Diane Ninemire | 1 (2002) | 3 | 11 | California |
| Heather Tarr | 1 (2009) | 2 | 8 | Washington |
| Margie Wright | 1 (1998) | 4 | 10 | Fresno State |
- Notes
- ^ UCLA's 1995 WCWS participation & title were vacated by the NCAA and are not included in these figures; see above. The Pac-12, which adopted its current name on July 1, 2011, retains all historical records from its years as the Pac-10. The conference had adopted the "Pac-10" name in 1978, but did not begin sponsoring women's sports until the 1986–87 school year.
- ^ The Big West Conference was known as the Pacific Coast Athletic Association until July 1988. Totals include all appearances by conference members under both names, but includes only appearances after the conference began sponsoring women's sports in 1984–85.
- ^ Nebraska's 1985 WCWS participation & title game appearance were vacated by the NCAA and are not included in these totals. The Big Eight merged with four teams from the Southwest Conference to form the Big 12 in 1996.
- ^ a b c d e f Conference is now defunct.
- ^ The Western Athletic Conference (WAC) did not sponsor women's sports until the 1990–91 academic year, after absorbing the High Country Athletic Conference (HCAC), a parallel women's-only conference. The WAC maintains all historic records from the HCAC; totals include Utah State's 1984 and Utah's 1985 appearances while in the HCAC.
- ^ Texas A&M won two titles in four title game and five WCWS appearances while they were still members of the Southwest Conference, which is now defunct. Texas A&M was a charter member of the Big 12 in 1996, but left for the Southeastern Conference in July 2012.
- ^ a b Following the breakup of the Metro in 1991 by Florida State, South Carolina, Cincinnati, and Memphis, the Metro and its breakaway Great Midwest Conference reunified in 1995 as Conference USA.
- ^ Although the American Athletic Conference inherited the charter of the original Big East Conference following the 2013 Big East split, the current Big East Conference maintains all athletic records of the original conference in all sports that it sponsors currently.
- ^ Records include those of the Gateway Collegiate Athletic Conference when it was originally a women's-only conference parallel to the MVC. In 1985, after the MVC stopped sponsoring football, the Gateway took on football as its only men's sport. In 1992, the women's portion of the Gateway merged into the MVC, which maintains all historic records of Gateway women's sports. The football side of the conference maintained the Gateway charter, first as the Gateway Football Conference and now the Missouri Valley Football Conference.
- ^ The Mid-Continent Conference adopted its current name of The Summit League in June 2007.
- ^ The NorPac, in full the Northern Pacific Conference, was a women's-only conference that operated from 1982 to 1986. The conference disbanded when the then-Pac-10, home to five of the final seven NorPac members, began sponsoring women's sports in 1986–87. The remaining two schools, which were members of the PCAA for men's sports, moved their women's sports to that conference.
- ^ The North Star Conference was a women's-only conference that merged into the Mid-Continent Conference, now The Summit League, in 1992. The Summit maintains all historic records of North Star sports.
- ^ The WCAA, in full the Western Collegiate Athletic Association, was a women's-only conference that operated from 1981 to 1986. Its final five members were all members of the conference known at the time as the Pac-10 and moved their women's sports to that league.
- ^ UCLA's 1995 WCWS participation & title were vacated by the NCAA and are not included in these figures; see above. The Pac-12, which adopted its current name on July 1, 2011, retains all historical records from its years as the Pac-10. The conference had adopted the "Pac-10" name in 1978, but did not begin sponsoring women's sports until the 1986–87 school year.
See also
editFootnotes
editReferences
edit- ^ "8 things to know about the 2022 Women's College World Series | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved 2024-06-11.
- ^ Mary L. Littlewood (1998). Women's Fastpitch Softball – The Path to the Gold, An Historical Look at Women's Fastpitch in the United States (first ed.). National Fastpitch Coaches Association, Columbia, Missouri. pp. 145, 208. ISBN 0-9664310-0-6.
- ^ Grundy, Pamela & Shackelford, Susan (2005). Shattering the Glass. The New Press. ISBN 1-56584-822-5.
- ^ a b c d e f Plummer, William; Floyd, Larry C. (2013). A Series Of Their Own: History Of The Women's College World Series. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States: Turnkey Communications Inc. ISBN 978-0-9893007-0-4.
- ^ Starr, Mark (June 12, 1995). "No Credit For UCLA". Newsweek. p. 58.
- ^ Montville, Leigh (June 12, 1995). "Ringer From Down Under". Sports Illustrated.
- ^ "CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY".