2017 NCAA Division I softball tournament

2017 NCAA Division I
softball tournament
Teams	64
Finals site	ASA Hall of Fame Stadium; Oklahoma City;
Champions	Oklahoma (4th title)
Runner-up	Florida (8th WCWS Appearance)
Winning coach	Patty Gasso (4th title)
MOP	Shay Knighten (Oklahoma)
	← 2016 ; NCAA Division I softball tournament; 2018 →;

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
America East	Albany	Regionals (2005, 2006, 2007, 2011, 2014)
American	Tulsa	Regionals (2006, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2014)	^[2]
ACC	Florida State	WCWS (1987, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 2002, 2004, 2014, 2016)	^[3]
A-10	Fordham	Regionals (2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016)
ASUN	USC Upstate	Regionals (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016)	^[4]
Big 12	Oklahoma	1st (2000, 2013, 2016)	^[5]
Big East	DePaul	WCWS (1999, 2000, 2005, 2007)	^[6]
Big Sky	Montana	1st Appearance	^[7]
Big South	Longwood	Regionals (2013, 2015, 2016)	^[8]
Big Ten	Minnesota	WCWS 1976, 1978	^[9]
Big West	Cal State Fullerton	1st (1986)	^[10]
Colonial	James Madison	Super Regionals (2016)	^[11]
Conference USA	Louisiana Tech	WCWS (1983, 1985, 1986)	^[12]
Horizon League	UIC	WCWS (1994)	^[13]
Ivy League	Princeton	WCWS (1995, 1996)	^[14]
MAC	Kent State	WCWS (1990)	^[15]
MAAC	Fairfield	Regionals (2015)
MEAC	Florida A&M	Regionals (1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2014, 2015, 2016)
MVC	Southern Illinois	WCWS (1970, 1977, 1978, 1991)	^[16]
Mountain West	San Jose State	Regionals (2013)	^[17]
Northeastern	Saint Francis (PA)	1st Appearance	^[18]
OVC	Jacksonville State	Super Regionals (2009)	^[19]
Pac-12	Arizona	1st (1991, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2001, 2006, 2007)	^[20]
Patriot League	Lehigh	Regionals (1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015)
SEC	Ole Miss	Regionals (2016)	^[21]
SoCon	East Tennessee State	1st Appearance	^[22]
Southland	McNeese State	Regionals (1994, 2005, 2010, 2016)	^[23]
SWAC	Texas Southern	Regionals (2014, 2015)	^[24]
Summit League	North Dakota State	Super Regionals (2009)	^[25]
Sun Belt	Louisiana–Lafayette	WCWS (1993, 1995, 1996, 2003, 2008, 2014)	^[26]
WAC	New Mexico State	Regionals (2011, 2015)	^[27]
WCC	BYU	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. Florida
2. Arizona
3. Oregon
4. Florida State
5. UCLA
6. Washington
7. Auburn
8. Tennessee

9. Texas A&M
10. Oklahoma
11. Utah
12. Ole Miss
13. LSU
14. Kentucky
15. Baylor
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.

Gainesville Super Regional

Round 1			Round 2			Regional Finals				Super Regionals

1	Florida	9⁽⁵⁾

	Florida A&M	0
			1	Florida	2

				Oklahoma State	0
	FIU	0

	Oklahoma State	2
						1	Florida	0	5
Gainesville Regional
							Oklahoma State	1	0
	Florida A&M	0

	FIU	3
				Oklahoma State	5

				FIU	0



										1	Florida	0	2	2

										16	Alabama	3	0	1
16	Alabama	5

	Albany	1
			16	Alabama	1⁽⁹⁾

				Minnesota	0
	Minnesota	11⁽⁵⁾

	Louisiana Tech	3
						16	Alabama	1	—
Tuscaloosa Regional
							Minnesota	0	—
	Albany	1

	Louisiana Tech	8
				Minnesota	5⁽⁹⁾

				Louisiana Tech	2

Knoxville Super Regional

Round 1			Round 2			Regional Finals				Super Regionals

9	Texas A&M	14⁽⁵⁾

	Texas Southern	0
			9	Texas A&M	3

				Texas State	1
	Texas	1

	Texas State	2⁽¹²⁾
						9	Texas A&M	3	—
College Station Regional
							Texas	1	—
	Texas Southern	0

	Texas	8⁽⁵⁾
				Texas State	3

				Texas	6



										9	Texas A&M	1	6	5

										8	Tennessee	8	5	3
8	Tennessee	5

	Longwood	0
			8	Tennessee	7

				USC Upstate	3
	Ohio State	3

	USC Upstate	7
						8	Tennessee	3	—
Knoxville Regional
							Longwood	0	—
	Longwood	3

	Ohio State	1
				USC Upstate	2

				Longwood	4

Los Angeles Super Regional

Round 1			Round 2			Regional Finals				Super Regionals

5	UCLA	8⁽⁵⁾

	Lehigh	0
			5	UCLA	10⁽⁶⁾

				San Jose State	2
	San Jose State	3

	Cal State Fullerton	0
						5	UCLA	9	—
Los Angeles Regional
							Cal State Fullerton	1	—
	Lehigh	8

	Cal State Fullerton	10
				San Jose State	0

				Cal State Fullerton	1



										5	UCLA	8⁽¹¹⁾	1	—

										12	Ole Miss	7	0	—
12	Ole Miss	8⁽⁵⁾

	Southern Illinois	0
			12	Ole Miss	2

				Arizona State	0
	Arizona State	9

	North Carolina	3
						12	Ole Miss	7	—
Oxford Regional
							North Carolina	2	—
	Southern Illinois	0

	North Carolina	4
				Arizona State	2

				North Carolina	3

Tallahassee Super Regional

Round 1			Round 2			Regional Finals				Super Regionals

13	LSU	2

	Fairfield	1
			13	LSU	2

				Louisiana–Lafayette	4
	McNeese State	0

	Louisiana–Lafayette	6
							Louisiana–Lafayette	1	1
Baton Rouge Regionals
						13	LSU	6	5
	Fairfield	2

	McNeese State	6
			13	LSU	10

				McNeese State	1



										13	LSU	1	1	6

										4	Florida State	3	0	4
4	Florida State	3

	Princeton	0
			4	Florida State	7

				Georgia	1
	Georgia	4

	Jacksonville State	2
						4	Florida State	8	—
Tallahassee Regionals
							Georgia	5	—
	Princeton	2

	Jacksonville State	10⁽⁶⁾
				Georgia	8

				Jacksonville State	2

Eugene Super Regional

Round 1			Round 2			Regional Finals				Super Regionals

3	Oregon	13⁽⁵⁾

	UIC	0
			3	Oregon	6⁽⁸⁾

				Wisconsin	5
	Wisconsin	7

	Missouri	2
						3	Oregon	9	—
Eugene Regional
							Wisconsin	0	—
	UIC	5

	Missouri	4
				Wisconsin	2

				UIC	0



										3	Oregon	4	6	—

										14	Kentucky	0	5	—
14	Kentucky	6

	DePaul	0
			14	Kentucky	1

				Illinois	0
	Illinois	3⁽¹²⁾

	Marshall	2
						14	Kentucky	4	—
Lexington Regional
							Illinois	2	—
	DePaul	1

	Marshall	2⁽⁸⁾
				Illinois	10⁽⁵⁾

				Marshall	2

Seattle Super Regional

Round 1			Round 2			Regional Finals				Super Regionals

11	Utah	10⁽⁵⁾

	Fordham	0
			11	Utah	3

				BYU	2
	Mississippi State	0

	BYU	8⁽⁶⁾
						11	Utah	14⁽⁶⁾	—
Salt Lake City Regional
							BYU	0	—
	Mississippi State	3

	Fordham	9
				BYU	12⁽⁵⁾

				Fordham	1



										11	Utah	4	9	1

										6	Washington	10	8	2
6	Washington	8⁽⁵⁾

	Montana	0
			6	Washington	12⁽⁵⁾

				Michigan	4
	Michigan	3

	Fresno State	1
						6	Washington	4	—
Seattle Regional
							Michigan	2	—
	Montana	0

	Fresno State	7
				Michigan	4

				Fresno State	0

Auburn Super Regional

Round 1			Round 2			Regional Finals				Super Regionals

7	Auburn	11⁽⁵⁾

	East Tennessee State	0
			7	Auburn	4⁽⁹⁾

				California	3
	Notre Dame	2

	California	6
						7	Auburn	8	—
Auburn Regional
							California	2	—
	East Tennessee State	6

	Notre Dame	7⁽⁸⁾
				California	5

				Notre Dame	3



										7	Auburn	0	2	—

										10	Oklahoma	4	5	—
10	Oklahoma	2

	North Dakota State	3⁽⁹⁾
				North Dakota State	1

				Tulsa	2
	Arkansas	4

	Tulsa	5
							Tulsa	4	0
Norman Regional
						10	Oklahoma	6⁽¹⁰⁾	3
10	Oklahoma	5

	Arkansas	3
				North Dakota State	2

			10	Oklahoma	10⁽⁶⁾

Tucson Super Regional

Round 1			Round 2			Regional Finals				Super Regionals

15	Baylor	1

	Kent State	0
			15	Baylor	4

				James Madison	2
	Oregon State	2

	James Madison	3
						15	Baylor	1	—
Waco Regional
							James Madison	0	—
	Kent State	2

	Oregon State	1
				James Madison	4

				Kent State	0



										15	Baylor	2	6	6

										2	Arizona	3	4	5
2	Arizona	11⁽⁵⁾

	New Mexico State	0
			2	Arizona	5

				South Carolina	0
	Saint Francis (PA)	2

	South Carolina	12⁽⁵⁾
						2	Arizona	9	—
Tucson Regional
							South Carolina	0	—
	New Mexico State	4

	Saint Francis (PA)	8
				South Carolina	3

				Saint Francis (PA)	1

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)
UCLA	Pac-12	47–13 (16–8)	Kelly Inouye-Perez	27 (last: 2016)	1st (1982, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990 1992, 1995*, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2010)	95–32
Oklahoma	Big 12	56–9 (17–1)	Patty Gasso	11 (last: 2016)	1st (2000, 2013, 2016)	22–15
Florida	SEC	55–8 (20–3)	Tim Walton	8 (last: 2015)	1st (2014, 2015)	22–12
Oregon	Pac-12	52-6 (17-6)	Mike White	5 (last: 2015)	3rd (2014)	4-8
LSU	SEC	47–20 (12–12)	Beth Torina	6 (last: 2016)	3rd (2001, 2004, 2015, 2016)	8–10
Texas A&M	SEC	47–11 (16–7)	Jo Evans	8 (last: 2008)	1st (1983, 1987)	19–13
Baylor	Big 12	48–13 (13–5)	Glenn Moore	4 (last: 2014)	3rd (2011, 2014)	5–6
Washington	Pac-12	48–12 (16–8)	Heather Tarr	12 (last: 2013)	1st (2009)	19–17

† = From NCAA Division I Softball Championship Results

Bracket

First round			Second round			Semifinals				Finals

1	Florida	8⁽⁵⁾

9	Texas A&M	0
			1	Florida	7

			13	LSU	0
13	LSU	2

5	UCLA	1
						1	Florida	5	—

						6	Washington	2	—
9	Texas A&M	2

5	UCLA	8
			6	Washington	1

			5	UCLA	0



										1	Florida	5	4	—

										10	Oklahoma	7⁽¹⁷⁾	5	—
3	Oregon	1

6	Washington	3
			6	Washington	1

			10	Oklahoma	3
15	Baylor	3

10	Oklahoma	6
						10	Oklahoma	4	—

						3	Oregon	2	—
3	Oregon	7

15	Baylor	4
			13	LSU	1

			3	Oregon	4

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	ESPN	8,428
3	6:00 p.m.	(6) Washington vs. (3) Oregon	ESPN2	8,874
4	8:30 p.m.	(10) Oklahoma vs. (15) Baylor	ESPN2	8,874
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	ESPN	9,658
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		8,696
9	6:00 p.m.	(5) UCLA vs. (6) Washington		9,076
10	8:30 p.m.	(3) Oregon vs. (13) LSU		9,076
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	ESPN	9,419
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 1

June 5, 2017 – 6:00 p.m. (CDT) at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	R	H	E
Oklahoma	0	0	0	0	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	3	7	10	2
Florida	0	0	0	1	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	1	5	12	0
WP: Paige Lowary (16–3) LP: Kelly Barnhill (26–4) Home runs: OKLA: Nicole Mendes, Falepolima Aviu, Shay Knighten FLA: None Attendance: 8,337 Boxscore

Game 2

June 6, 2017 – 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
Florida	0	3	1	0	0	0	0	4	6	1
Oklahoma	1	4	0	0	0	0	x	5	8	1
WP: Mariah Lopez (18–1) LP: Aleshia Ocasio (8–1) Sv: Paige Lowary (11) Home runs: FLA: Sophia Reynoso, Chelsea Herndon OKLA: Nicole Mendes Attendance: 8,507 Boxscore

All-tournament Team

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

Position	Player	School
P	Kelly Barnhill	Florida
	Delanie Gourley	Florida
	Paige Lowary	Oklahoma
	Paige Parker	Oklahoma
IF	Shay Knighten (MOP)	Oklahoma
	Ali Aguilar	Washington
	Mia Camuso	Oregon
	Alexis Mack	Oregon
OF	Amanda Lorenz	Florida
OF	Justine McLean	Florida
U	Nicole Mendes	Oklahoma
U	Aleshia Ocasio	Florida

Record by conference

Conference	# of Bids	Record	Win %	RF	SR	WS	NS	F	NC
Big 12	4	23–10	.697	4	2	2	1	1	1
SEC	13	39–27	.591	10	8	3	1	1	–
Pac-12	8	30–15	.667	6	5	3	2	–	–
ACC	3	7–6	.538	2	1	–	–	–	–
Big Ten	5	8–10	.444	4	–	–	–	–	–
American	1	2–2	.500	1	–	–	–	–	–
Sun Belt	2	3–4	.429	1	–	–	–	–	–
Big South	1	2–2	.500	1	–	–	–	–	–
Big West	1	2–2	.500	1	–	–	–	–	–
CAA	1	2–2	.500	1	–	–	–	–	–
WCC	1	2–2	.500	1	–	–	–	–	–
C-USA	3	3–6	.333	–	–	–	–	–	–
MWC	2	2–4	.333	–	–	–	–	–	–
Other	19	8–38	.174	–	–	–	–	–	–

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.^[29]

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)