The Big Ten Conference has been playing softball since 1982 when the Big Ten Conference softball tournament was established to decide its champion. The Big Ten then began league play the following season in 1983 while eliminating the tournament until 1995. The tournament ran again from 1995 to 2008 and then again from 2013 to present day, which is used to determine the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Division I Softball Championship while the regular season determines the conference champion.
These are the official Big Ten champions based on standings. [1] 1982 was the only year the conference tournament was used to determine the champion. After that, the regular season determined the champion while the tournament held from 1983 to 1994 and 2009-13 was used only to determine the automatic bid into the NCAA Division I softball tournament.
| Year | Regular Season Champion | Conference Tournament Champion | National Championship | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | – | Northwestern | Big Ten softball tournament only. Teams from Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, and Ohio State participate. [2] | |
| 1983 | Indiana | – | Tournament eliminated, first regular season of conference play. Indiana , Iowa , Michigan , Michigan State , Minnesota , Northwestern , and Ohio State compete. | |
| 1984 | Northwestern | – | ||
| 1985 | Northwestern | – | ||
| 1986 | Indiana Minnesota Northwestern | – | ||
| 1987 | Northwestern | – | ||
| 1988 | Minnesota | – | ||
| 1989 | Iowa | – | ||
| 1990 | Iowa Ohio State | – | ||
| 1991 | Minnesota | – | ||
| 1992 | Michigan | – | Penn State begins league play. [3] | |
| 1993 | Michigan | – | ||
| 1994 | Indiana | – | ||
| 1995 | Michigan | Michigan | Conference tournament resumes in double-elimination format. Purdue begins league play. [4] | |
| 1996 | Michigan | Michigan | Wisconsin begins league play. [5] | |
| 1997 | Iowa | Michigan | ||
| 1998 | Michigan | Michigan | ||
| 1999 | Michigan | Minnesota | ||
| 2000 | Iowa | Michigan | ||
| 2001 | Michigan | Iowa | Illinois begins league play. [6] | |
| 2002 | Michigan | Michigan | ||
| 2003 | Iowa | Iowa | ||
| 2004 | Michigan | Michigan State | ||
| 2005 | Michigan | Michigan | Michigan | First (and to-date only) Big Ten softball National Champion [7] |
| 2006 | Northwestern | Michigan | Northwestern (runner-up) | |
| 2007 | Ohio State | Ohio State | ||
| 2008 | Michigan Northwestern | Northwestern | ||
| 2009 | Michigan | – | Conference tournament eliminated again. | |
| 2010 | Michigan | – | ||
| 2011 | Michigan | – | ||
| 2012 | Michigan | – | Nebraska begins league play. [8] | |
| 2013 | Michigan | Wisconsin | Conference tournament resumes in single-elimination format. | |
| 2014 | Michigan Nebraska | Minnesota | ||
| 2015 | Michigan | Michigan | Maryland and Rutgers begin league play. [9] [10] | |
| 2016 | Michigan | Minnesota | ||
| 2017 | Minnesota | Minnesota | ||
| 2018 | Michigan | Minnesota | ||
| 2019 | Michigan | Michigan | ||
| 2020 | Season cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic | |||
| 2021 | Michigan | – | Conference tournament canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. | |
| 2022 | Northwestern | Nebraska | ||
| 2023 | Northwestern | Northwestern | ||
| 2024 | ||||
| 2025 | Oregon , UCLA , and Washington will begin league play. [11] | |||
| School | Big Ten Championships Reg. Season/Tournament | Regular Season Championships | Tournament Championships |
|---|---|---|---|
| Illinois | 0/0 | ||
| Indiana | 3/0 | 1983, 1986*, 1994 | |
| Iowa | 5/2 | 1989, 1990*, 1997, 2000, 2003 | 2001, 2003 |
| Maryland | 0/0 | ||
| Michigan | 22/10 | 1992, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2008*, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014*, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2021 | 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2015, 2019 |
| Michigan State | 0/1 | 2004 | |
| Minnesota | 4/5 | 1986*, 1988, 1991, 2017 | 1999, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018 |
| Nebraska | 1/1 | 2014 | 2022 |
| Northwestern | 8/3 | 1984, 1985, 1986*, 1987, 2006, 2008*, 2022, 2023 | 1982, 2008, 2023 |
| Ohio State | 2/1 | 1990*, 2007 | 2007 |
| Penn State | 0/0 | ||
| Purdue | 0/0 | ||
| Rutgers | 0/0 | ||
| Wisconsin | 0/1 | 2013 | |
The 1982 Big Ten Conference baseball tournament was held at Old Illinois Field on the campus of the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign in Champaign, Illinois, from May 21 through 23. The top two teams from the regular season in each division participated in the double-elimination tournament, the second annual tournament sponsored by the Big Ten Conference to determine the league champion. Minnesota won their first tournament championship and earned the Big Ten Conference's automatic bid to the 1982 NCAA Division I baseball tournament
The 1989 Big Ten Conference baseball tournament was held at Ray Fisher Stadium on the campus of the University of Michigan in Minneapolis, Minnesota, from May 19 through 20. The top four teams from the regular season participated in the double-elimination tournament, the ninth annual tournament sponsored by the Big Ten Conference to determine the league champion. Illinois won their first tournament championship and earned the Big Ten Conference's automatic bid to the 1989 NCAA Division I baseball tournament. Illinois was the first team other than Michigan and Minnesota to win the event.
The 1990 Big Ten Conference baseball tournament was held at Duane Banks Field on the campus of the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa from May 15 through 19. The top two teams from the regular season in each division participated in the double-elimination tournament, the tenth annual tournament sponsored by the Big Ten Conference to determine the league champion. Illinois won their second tournament championship and earned the Big Ten Conference's automatic bid to the 1990 NCAA Division I baseball tournament
The 1992 Big Ten Conference baseball tournament was held at Trautman Field on the campus of Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, from May 15 through 19. The top four teams from the regular season participated in the double-elimination tournament, the twelfth annual tournament sponsored by the Big Ten Conference to determine the league champion. Minnesota won their fourth tournament championship and earned the Big Ten Conference's automatic bid to the 1992 NCAA Division I baseball tournament
The 1998 Big Ten Conference baseball tournament was held at Illinois Field on the campus of the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign in Champaign, Illinois, from May 15 through 19. The top four teams from the regular season participated in the double-elimination tournament, the eighteenth annual tournament sponsored by the Big Ten Conference to determine the league champion. Minnesota won their sixth tournament championship and earned the Big Ten Conference's automatic bid to the 1998 NCAA Division I baseball tournament.
The 2000 Big Ten Conference baseball tournament was held at Siebert Field on the campus of University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, Minnesota, from May 15 through 19. The top six teams from the regular season participated in the double-elimination tournament, the nineteenth annual tournament sponsored by the Big Ten Conference to determine the league champion. Illinois won their third tournament championship and earned the Big Ten Conference's automatic bid to the 2000 NCAA Division I baseball tournament.
The 2005 Big Ten Conference baseball tournament was held at Illinois Field on the campus of the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign in Champaign, Illinois, from May 15 through 19. The top six teams from the regular season participated in the double-elimination tournament, the twenty fourth annual tournament sponsored by the Big Ten Conference to determine the league champion. Ohio State won their seventh tournament championship and earned the Big Ten Conference's automatic bid to the 2005 NCAA Division I baseball tournament.
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The 1998 NCAA Division I baseball season, play of college baseball in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) began in the spring of 1998. The season progressed through the regular season and concluded with the 1998 College World Series. The College World Series, held for the fifty second time in 1998, consisted of one team from each of eight regional competitions and was held in Omaha, Nebraska, at Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium as a double-elimination tournament. Southern California claimed the championship for the twelfth time, and first since 1978.
The 2000 NCAA Division I baseball season, play of college baseball in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) began in the spring of 2000. The season progressed through the regular season and concluded with the 2000 College World Series. The College World Series, held for the fifty fourth time in 2000, consisted of one team from each of eight super regional competitions and was held in Omaha, Nebraska, at Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium as a double-elimination tournament. LSU claimed the championship for the fifth time.
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