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.
The Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women was founded in 1971 to govern collegiate women's athletics and to administer national championships. During its existence, the AIAW and its predecessor, the Division for Girls' and Women's Sports (DGWS), recognized via these championships the teams and individuals who excelled at the highest level of women's collegiate competition.
The Florida Gators are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Florida, located in Gainesville. The University of Florida, its athletic program, its alumni and its sports fans are often collectively referred to as the "Gator Nation." The Gators compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Southeastern Conference (SEC) and are consistently ranked among the top college sports programs in the United States. The University of Florida currently fields teams in nine men's sports and twelve women's sports.
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 Oklahoma State Cowboys and Cowgirls are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Oklahoma State University, located in Stillwater. The program's mascot is a cowboy named Pistol Pete. Oklahoma State participates at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)'s Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) as a member of the Big 12 Conference. The university's current athletic director is Chad Weiberg, who replaced the retiring Mike Holder on July 1, 2021. In total, Oklahoma State has 53 NCAA team national titles, which ranks fifth in most NCAA team national championships. These national titles have come in wrestling (34), golf (11), basketball (2), baseball (1), and cross country (5). Oklahoma State also claims non-NCAA national titles in football (1) and equestrian (1).
The NCAA Division I softball tournament is held annually in May/June and features 64 college softball teams in the United States, culminating in the Women's College World Series (WCWS), which is played in Oklahoma City.
Maverick Stadium is a 12,000-seat multi-purpose stadium on the western edge of University of Texas at Arlington campus.
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 UT Arlington Mavericks are the athletic teams that represent the University of Texas at Arlington in Arlington, Texas. The Mavericks currently compete in the NCAA Division I Western Athletic Conference in 15 varsity sports. The number rose to 15 in the fall of 2017 women's golf began their first season of competition that athletic season.
The Sacramento State Hornets is the team that represents California State University, Sacramento in Sacramento, the capital city of the U.S. state of California, in intercollegiate athletics.
The Central Oklahoma Bronchos, are the intercollegiate athletic teams representing University of Central Oklahoma, located in Edmond, Oklahoma. The five men's and nine women's varsity teams are called the "Bronchos". The school's identification as Bronchos dates back to 1922, when the wife of football coach Charles W. Wantland suggested it for the school's mascot. The official colors of the teams are bronze and blue, which the institution adopted in 1895. The Bronchos compete in the NCAA's Division II and in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association in all sports except women's rowing, which competes in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference. The Bronchos have won 22 national championships, with the most recent coming in 2023 as the wrestling program won the NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships. The university's current athletic director is Stan Wagnon, who has served in the position since 2020.
The Minnesota State Mavericks are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Minnesota State University, Mankato. The school's athletic program includes 21 varsity sports teams. More than 600 students participate each year in athletics for the university. Most of the university's athletic teams compete at the NCAA Division II level in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). The men's and women's ice hockey teams compete at the Division I level, respectively in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) and Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA). Minnesota State began competition in the NSIC in 2008–09, due to the dissolution of the North Central Conference. It was also one of the seven WCHA men's hockey members that left that league after the 2020–21 season to reestablish the CCHA, a move that led to the demise of the men's side of the WCHA.
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 Arizona Wildcats softball team represents the University of Arizona in NCAA Division I Softball. Having claimed eight national championships, the team is one of the most successful in the history of the sport. It plays its home games at Rita Hillenbrand Memorial Stadium in Tucson, AZ. The team was formerly coached by Mike Candrea, who began his UA coaching career in 1986 and announced his retirement on June 8, 2021. He retired as the all time winningest coach in Collegiate softball history with 1,674 wins, more Collegiate national titles with 8 and the fourth most wins of any coach in any NCAA sport.
The UT Arlington Mavericks baseball team is a varsity intercollegiate athletic team of the University of Texas at Arlington in Arlington, Texas, United States. The team is a member of the Western Athletic Conference, which is part of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I. The team plays its home games at Clay Gould Ballpark in Arlington, Texas. The Mavericks are coached by Clay Van Hook.
The UT Arlington Mavericks women's basketball team is an NCAA Division I college basketball team competing in the Western Athletic Conference and representing the University of Texas at Arlington. Home games are played at College Park Center, located on the university's campus in Arlington, Texas. The team appeared in the 2005 NCAA tournament, losing to #4 seed Texas Tech in the first round, 69–49, and the 2007 NCAA tournament, dropping their first round game to #4 seed Texas A&M 58–50. The team has also made three postseason appearances in the NIT, the first in 1998 as an at-large, the second in 2009 and the most recent was another at-large bid in 2017.
The Texas–Arlington Mavericks volleyball team, historically one of the most nationally prominent teams on campus, is an NCAA Division I college volleyball team rejoined the Western Athletic Conference in July 2022. Home games are played at College Park Center, located on University of Texas at Arlington's campus in Arlington. The team has appeared in eight AIAW National Tournaments, eight NCAA Tournaments and one National Invitational Volleyball Championship Tournament, collecting 12 regular seasons titles and ten conference tournament titles along the way. The Mavericks are currently in their longest national post-season drought in program history, with the last appearance coming in the 2002 season.
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 1982 AIAW Women's College World Series was held from May 20 through May 25 in Norman, Oklahoma. The final two games were postponed by rain for two days. Twelve Division I college softball teams met in what was to become the last AIAW softball tournament of that organization's history. After playing their way through the regular season and regional tournaments, the 12 advancing teams met for the AIAW Division I college softball championship. Days later, Oklahoma State went on to participate also in the NCAA WCWS tournament in Omaha. In 1982, the Division I softball tournaments of both the AIAW and the NCAA were called "Women's College World Series." That moniker has been used for the annual topmost-level collegiate women's softball tournaments since the first one in 1969. 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."
2022 UT Arlington Mavericks softball team 
