IRVING, Texas – The three top teams in the American Athletic Conference throughout the 2021 softball season will continue play into the NCAA Championship. Wichita State, UCF and USF each heard its name called during the NCAA Selection Show on Sunday night.
UCF faces off with Auburn in the NCAA Tallahassee (Fla.) Regional on May 21 at 2 p.m. (ET) on ESPN2. USF takes on No. 4 national seed Florida in the NCAA Gainesville (Fla.) Regional on May 21 at 2 p.m. (ET) on ESPNU. Wichita State begins play in the NCAA Norman (Okla.) Regional on May 21 at 6 p.m. (ET) against Texas A&M on ESPN2. Each of the 16 NCAA Regional sites feature four teams competing in a double-elimination tournament, with the top-16 advancing to best 2-out-3 series at the highest remaining seeds in NCAA Super Regionals. The final eight teams will qualify for the 2021 Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City.
Teams from The American have now reached the NCAA Regional round a combined 19 times since the conference was reconstituted prior to the 2014 season. The 2021 NCAA Championship marks the fifth time in seven seasons that multiple American teams have earned a bid to NCAA Regionals. American squads are 20-32 in previous NCAA tournament appearances, with this year's three qualifiers vying to became the first teams from the conference to advance to NCAA Super Regionals.
Wichita State claimed the fifth NCAA Regional appearance in program history, reaching the tournament for the third time under head coach Kristi Bredbenner. The Shockers claimed the regular-season title in The American with an 18-5-1 record and also became just the third team in league history to complete the league double with a 7-4 win in the tournament final over UCF on May 15 to improve to 39-11-1. Wichita State compiled a 3-8 overall record in its previous four NCAA Regional berths, eliminating Oklahoma State from the 2018 Fayetteville (Arkansas) Regional following 8-2 and 5-4 victories.
UCF is headed to NCAA Regionals for the eighth time and first since 2016, as head coach Cindy Ball-Malone has the Knights back in the NCAA tournament. The Knights placed third in the regular-season standings with a 16-7-1 record and finished as the runner-up in the tournament to extend their record to 39-17-1. UCF is a combined 8-12 in its seven prior trips to NCAA Regionals, logging a 2-2 showing in 2014 (NCAA Gainesville Regional), 2015 (NCAA Tallahassee Regional) and 2016 (NCAA Gainesville Regional).
USF is set for its 16th NCAA Regional appearance all-time and fourth time in the past five NCAA tournaments that have been contested. The Bulls have reached NCAA Super Regionals twice and claimed a bid into the 2012 Women’s College World Series. USF capped the 2021 regular season as the second-place team in The American with a 16-7 league record (29-17 overall). USF has previously played one other time in the NCAA Gainesville Regional, posting a 1-2 mark in 2018.
American Athletic Conference Women’s Softball
2021 NCAA Division I Softball Championship
NCAA Tallahassee Regional – Friday, May 21/Joanne Graf Field, Tallahassee, Florida
Auburn vs. UCF – (2 p.m. ET/1 p.m. CT, ESPN2)
NCAA Gainesville Regional – Friday, May 21/Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium, Gainesville, Florida
USF vs. No. 4 Florida – (2 p.m. ET/1 p.m. CT, ESPNU)
NCAA Norman Regional – Friday, May 21/Marita Hynes Field, Norman, Oklahoma
Texas A&M vs. Wichita State – (6 p.m. ET/5 p.m. CT, ESPN2)