The Stanford Cardinal are the athletic teams that represent Stanford University. Stanford's program has won 136 NCAA team championships, the most of any university. Stanford has won at least one NCAA team championship each academic year for 48 consecutive years, starting in 1976–77 and continuing through 2023–24. Through January 2024, Stanford athletes have won 552 individual NCAA titles.
Jessica Ofelia Mendoza is an American sportscaster and former softball player. Currently, she serves as an analyst for ESPN's coverage of Major League Baseball and Los Angeles Dodgers coverage on Spectrum SportsNet LA. As a softball outfielder, Mendoza was a collegiate four-time First Team All-American and two-time Olympic medalist. Mendoza played from 1999 to 2002 at Stanford and was a member of the United States women's national softball team from 2004 to 2010. She won a gold medal at the 2004 Olympics in Athens and a silver medal at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. She played professionally in National Pro Fastpitch and was named 2011 Player of the Year and currently ranks in the top 10 for career batting average and slugging percentage.
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 UCLA Bruins softball team represents the University of California, Los Angeles in NCAA Division I softball. The Bruins are among the most decorated programs in NCAA softball, leading all schools in NCAA championships with 12, 13 overall Women's College World Series championships, championship game appearances with 22, WCWS appearances with 36, and NCAA Tournament wins with 187.
The Minnesota Golden Gophers softball team represents the University of Minnesota in National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) Division I competition. College softball became a varsity sport at the University of Minnesota in 1974.
Jessica Merchant is an American softball coach and former softball player. She is currently the associate head coach of the Stanford Cardinal softball team. She previously served as an assistant coach with the Minnesota Golden Gophers and UMass Minutewomen. She played professional softball in the National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) league for the New England Riptide for three seasons, and for the Connecticut Brakettes for one season. While playing for the Brakettes in 2006, she was named NPF Offensive Player of the Year.
Ashley Elizabeth Hansen Church is an American, former collegiate All-American, right-handed softball player originally from Chandler, Arizona. Hansen played at Stanford University from 2009 to 2012 as a shortstop and is the school doubles leader and also ranks top-5 in the Pac-12 Conference and the NCAA Division I for the career category.
Jessica Lynne Allister is an American softball coach and former catcher who is the current head coach at Stanford. Allister played college softball at Stanford and earned second-team All-American honors in her senior season of 2004. After a two-year professional softball career with the New England Riptide of National Pro Fastpitch, Allister began a coaching career as an assistant coach at Georgia, Stanford, and Oregon.
Ramona Leor Shelburne is an American sportswriter and NBA Insider for ESPN. She is also a former softball player; in high school, she was the 1997 L.A. City Softball Co-Player of the Year, and in college she played outfield for Stanford Cardinal for four years.
John Richard Rittman is an American college softball coach, serving as the inaugural head coach of the Clemson Tigers softball team. He previously served as head coach at Stanford and an assistant with USA Softball, Kansas, Washington, Minnesota, and Oregon.
The 2019 Stanford Cardinal football team represented Stanford University in the 2019 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Cardinal were led by ninth-year head coach David Shaw. They played their home games at Stanford Stadium and were members of the North Division of the Pac-12 Conference. They finished the season 4–8, 3–6 in Pac-12 play, to finish last place in the North Division. This was Stanford's worst record since 2007 and the first time that they did not earn bowl eligibility since 2008.
The 2019 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 February 7, 2019. The season will progress through the regular season, many conference tournaments and championship series, and will conclude with the 2019 NCAA Division I softball tournament and 2019 Women's College World Series. The Women's College World Series, consisting of the eight remaining teams in the NCAA Tournament will be held annually in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium, will end in June 2019.
Rachel Lauren Garcia is an American former softball pitcher. She most recently served as the pitching coach for UC San Diego. She played college softball for the UCLA Bruins and led the Bruins to the 2019 Women's College World Series championship, where she was named the Most Outstanding Player.
The 2000 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 2000. The season progressed through the regular season, many conference tournaments and championship series, and concluded with the 2000 NCAA Division I softball tournament and 2000 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 29, 2000.
The 2011 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 2011. The season progressed through the regular season, many conference tournaments and championship series, and concluded with the 2011 NCAA Division I softball tournament and 2011 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 June 7, 2011.
The USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year is an award given by USA Softball to the best college softball player of the year. The award has been given annually since 2002. The award is voted on by coaching representatives of 10 Division I conferences in the 10 USA Softball regions, members of the media who consistently cover Division I softball across the country, as well as past winners of the award.
The 1995 Stanford Cardinal baseball team represented Stanford University in the 1995 NCAA Division I baseball season. The Cardinal played their home games at Sunken Diamond. The team was coached by Mark Marquess in his 19th year at Stanford.
The Softball America Freshman of the Year is an award given by Wilson Sporting Goods to the best college softball freshman player of the year. The award has been given annually since 2019. From 2019 to 2020 the award was split into two honors, the player and pitchers of the year.
The 2023 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 2023. The season progressed through the regular season, many conference tournaments and championship series, and concluded with the 2023 NCAA Division I softball tournament and 2023 Women's College World Series. The Women's College World Series, consisting of the eight remaining teams in the NCAA tournament and held annually in Oklahoma City at USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium, ended in June 2023.
NiJaree Canady is an American college softball pitcher for the Stanford Cardinal. As a freshman in 2023, she was named NFCA National Freshman of the Year. As a sophomore in 2024, she was named USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year.
