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. Eight teams participate in the WCWS, which begins with a double-elimination tournament. In other words, a team is eliminated when it has lost two games. After six teams have been eliminated, the remaining two teams compete in a best-of-three series to determine the Division I WCWS National Champion.
College softball is softball as played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education, predominantly in the United States. College softball is normally played by women at the Intercollegiate level, whereas college baseball is normally played by men.
The South Dakota Coyotes, also known as the USD Coyotes, are the athletic teams for the University of South Dakota. Their team colors are vermilion and white. They have been members of Summit League of the NCAA's Division I since the 2011–12 school year. The football team plays in Division I's Football Championship Subdivision as a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference. The Coyotes were charter members of the Division II North Central Conference and were members until 2008 when it upgraded to Division I.
The Omaha Mavericks are the sports teams of the University of Nebraska Omaha. They participate in the NCAA's Division I and in The Summit League, except in ice hockey, where they compete in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC).
The Northern Colorado Bears are the athletic teams representing the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley, Colorado in intercollegiate athletics. The university sponsors seventeen teams including men and women's basketball, cross country, golf, tennis, and track and field; women's-only soccer, softball, swimming and diving, and volleyball; and men's-only baseball, football, and wrestling. The Bears compete in NCAA Division I, with the football team competing at the FCS level, and most teams are members of the Big Sky Conference. Three Northern Colorado teams have separate affiliations in sports that the Big Sky does not sponsor. The baseball team competes in the Summit League, the women's swimming and diving team is an affiliate member of the Western Athletic Conference, and the wrestling team is a member of the Big 12 Conference.
The Texas A&M Aggies softball team represents Texas A&M University in NCAA Division I college softball. The team belongs to the SEC Conference and plays home games at the Davis Diamond.The Aggies have won two NCAA championships in 1983 and 1987 along with an AIAW national championship in 1982. The Aggies have been NCAA runners-up three times in 1984, 1986, and 2008. Reaching the Women's College World Series eleven times, the Aggies have reached the finals six times in 1982, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1987, and 2008.
The Weber State Wildcats are the varsity athletic teams representing Weber State University in Ogden, Utah in intercollegiate athletics, sponsoring 16 teams. The Wildcats compete in NCAA Division I FCS and are charter members (1963) of the Big Sky Conference. The mascot is Waldo the Wildcat and team colors are purple and white, with black as an accessory color.
The Cal State Northridge Matadors are the athletic teams that represent California State University, Northridge in Northridge, Los Angeles, California. The Matadors field 17 teams in nineteen sports. The Matadors compete in NCAA Division I and are members of the Big West Conference. CSUN has been a member of the Big West Conference since the summer of 2001 for most sports. The men's and women's indoor track and field teams compete in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation instead. Men's volleyball also competed in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation, but began to compete in the Big West beginning in 2018.
The Upper Iowa Peacocks are the athletic teams that represent Upper Iowa University, located in Fayette, Iowa, in intercollegiate sports at the Division II level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), primarily competing in the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) for most of their sports since the 2023–24 academic year. The Peacocks previously competed in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) from 2003-04 to 2022-23, and the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference of the NCAA Division III ranks from 1922–23 to 2002–03. Their colors are blue and white.
The Arizona State Sun Devils softball team represents Arizona State University in NCAA Division I College softball. The team competes in the Pac-12 Conference, and plays its home games at Alberta B. Farrington Softball Stadium in Tempe, Arizona. Clint Myers, former head coach of the Sun Devils, guided the team to the Women's College World Series in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2013. The Sun Devils team won the National Championship in 2008 & 2011.
The Oregon Ducks softball team represents the University of Oregon in NCAA Division I college softball. The Ducks compete in the Pac-12 Conference and are led by head coach Melyssa Lombardi. Oregon plays their home games at Jane Sanders Stadium after playing at Howe Field through 2015. Oregon has appeared in eight Women's College World Series.
The Missouri Tigers softball team represents the University of Missouri in NCAA Division I college softball. The team is coached by head coach Larissa Anderson, who was hired on May 26, 2018.
The Black Hills State Yellow Jackets are the athletic sports teams for Black Hills State University. They are currently a member of the NCAA Division II and participate in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC). BHSU Rodeo teams are members of the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association (NIRA).
The UT Arlington Mavericks softball team is a varsity intercollegiate athletic team of the University of Texas at Arlington in Arlington, Texas, United States. The team rejoined the Western Athletic Conference in 2023, which is part of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I. The team plays its home games at Allan Saxe Field in Arlington, Texas.
The Stephen F. Austin Jacks softball team represents the Stephen F. Austin State University, located in Nacogdoches, Texas. The Jacks are a member of the Western Athletic Conference and participate in NCAA Division I college softball. The team is currently led by head coach Jeff Jackson and plays home games at SFA Softball Field.
The finals of the 1982 NCAA Division I softball tournament were held from May 27 through May 30. 16 Division I college softball teams met in the NCAA tournament's first round at campus sites. After having played their way through the regular season and first round, the eight advancing teams played in the NCAA Women's College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska. UCLA won the title. Historian Bill Plummer III wrote, "With their 77-8 season record, Texas A&M could have been a contender in Omaha − maybe even the top seed − against perennial softball powers like UCLA and Fresno State. The Aggies had been invited to the NCAA's first national tournament, but chose not to go. A&M coach Bob Brock had high respect for the eleven-year-old AIAW, even as the NCAA began to overshadow it. Out of a sense of loyalty to the AIAW, Brock said, his school chose the 1982 Norman championship over the NCAA's first in Omaha."
The 1992 NCAA Division I softball season, play of college softball in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I level, began in February 1992. The season progressed through the regular season, many conference tournaments and championship series, and concluded with the 1992 NCAA Division I softball tournament and 1992 Women's College World Series. The Women's College World Series, consisting of the eight remaining teams in the NCAA Tournament and held in Oklahoma City at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium, ended on May 26, 1992.
The 1997 NCAA Division I softball season, a play of college softball in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I level, began in February 1997. The season progressed through the regular season, many conference tournaments and championship series, and concluded with the 1997 NCAA Division I softball tournament and 1997 Women's College World Series. The Women's College World Series, consisting of the eight remaining teams in the NCAA Tournament and held in held in Oklahoma City at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium, ended on May 26, 1997.
The 2008 NCAA Division I softball season, play of college softball in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I level, began in February 2008. The season progressed through the regular season, many conference tournaments and championship series, and concluded with the 2008 NCAA Division I softball tournament and 2008 Women's College World Series. The Women's College World Series, consisting of the eight remaining teams in the NCAA Tournament and held in held in Oklahoma City at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium, ended on June 2, 2008.
The 2021 NCAA Division I softball tournament was held from May 21 through June 10, 2021 as the final part of the 2021 NCAA Division I softball season. 31 teams were awarded automatic bids as champions of their conferences after the Ivy League opted out of the 2021 softball season. The remaining 33 were selected at-large by the NCAA Division I softball selection committee on May 16, 2021. The tournament culminated with eight teams playing in the 2021 Women's College World Series at USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City.
2023 South Carolina Gamecocks softball team 
