IRVING, Texas – The field has been officially set for the 2021 American Athletic Conference Softball Championship, scheduled to take place on May 13-15 at the Collins Family Softball Complex in Tulsa, Oklahoma. All seven teams that compete in The American in softball were seeded in the tournament field based on regular-season winning percentage in conference games during the 2021 season.
The first round and semifinal round games of the 2021 American Softball Championship are scheduled to air live on ESPN+, with the conference championship game set for 2 p.m. (ET) on May 15 nationally on ESPN2.
No. 1 Seed Wichita State (37-11-1, 18-5-1) secured its first conference regular-season championship in The American and third in program history thanks to wins in three of four games against Tulsa on April 30-May 2. The Shockers, ranked 25th in the most recent USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll, won five of the six series they competed in during the conference season. Wichita State is the only team in the tournament field that earned a bye and is set to face the winner of No. 4 seed Tulsa and No. 5 seed Houston on May 14 at 7 p.m. (ET) on ESPN+.
No. 2 Seed USF (28-16, 16-7) just missed a third straight American regular-season title and instead claimed the tournament’s second seed following losses in three of the final four games of a series at rival UCF. The Bulls finished as the American Softball Championship runner-up in 2016 and 2018, falling as the tournament’s top seed to Tulsa in both tournaments. USF won five series during the course of the 2021 season, taking three of four games at No. 1 seed Wichita State on April 23-25. USF’s tournament will begin at 3 p.m. (ET) on May 13 on ESPN+ against Memphis in the first round.
No. 3 Seed UCF (37-16-1, 16-7-1) locked down the third seed in the championship after winning three of four games against rival USF in Orlando. The Knights, the 2015 American tournament champion, finished as the event runner-up as the top seed in the inaugural American Softball Championship in 2014. UCF won four separate league series during the regular season, including three by way of a sweep, to close out the 2021 conference campaign. The Knights will collide with East Carolina, whom UCF swept in four games in Greenville on April 9-11, in the tournament’s opening game on May 13 at 12 p.m. (ET) on ESPN+.
No. 4 Seed Tulsa (24-15, 15-8) earned a series split with Houston in the season’s final weekend to claim the fourth seed in the American Softball Championship, to be held on its home ground of the Collins Family Softball Complex. The Golden Hurricane have previously won three American tournament championships, sweeping league titles and automatic NCAA Championship bids in 2016-18. Tulsa claimed the 2016 conference championship as the tournament’s No. 3 seed thanks to a 4-0 win over top-seeded USF that season. Tulsa will play Houston once more in the first round of the American Softball Championship, set for May 13 at 6 p.m. (ET) on ESPN+.
No. 5 Seed Houston (17-32, 8-16) settled in to the tournament’s fifth seed thanks to a series split with Tulsa to close the 2021 regular season. The Cougars were unbeaten in their final three series of the year following a series setback against top-seeded Wichita State in early April. Houston is a four-time American tournament semifinalist and finished as the 2017 runner-up in a 1-0 decision against No. 1 seed Tulsa at ECU Softball Stadium. The Cougars and Golden Hurricane are set for a fifth straight contest on May 13 at 6 p.m. (ET) on ESPN+ in the first round of the 2021 American Softball Championship.
No. 6 Seed East Carolina (16-32, 7-17) secured the sixth seed in the conference tournament following a four-game sweep at home against Memphis in the final weekend of the regular season. It was the first series sweep of the year for the Pirates in league play. ECU previously reached the semifinal round as the host of the 2017 American Softball Championship, falling to No. 2 seed Houston at the ECU Softball Stadium. The Pirates and No. 3 seed UCF are scheduled to face off in the tournament’s first game on May 13 at 12 p.m. (ET) on ESPN+.
No. 7 Seed Memphis (9-40, 2-22) rounds out the tournament field as the seventh seed following a series sweep at the hands of East Carolina in the final series of the year. The Tigers previously reached the tournament’s semifinal round in both 2017 and 2018, falling to eventual champion Tulsa (2017) and runner-up Houston (2018) on each occasion. Memphis will take on No. 2 seed USF in the tournament’s first round on May 13 at 3 p.m. (ET) on ESPN+.
2021 American Athletic Conference Softball Championship
May 13-15, 2021
Collins Family Softball Complex
Tulsa, Oklahoma
First Round - Thursday, May 13
No. 3 UCF vs. No. 6 East Carolina – 12 p.m. ET/11 a.m. CT (ESPN+)
No. 2 USF vs. No. 7 Memphis – 3 p.m. ET/2 p.m. CT (ESPN+)
No. 4 Tulsa vs. No. 5 Houston – 6 p.m. ET/5 p.m. CT (ESPN+)
Semifinals - Friday, May 14
Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner – 4 p.m. ET/3 p.m. CT (ESPN+)
Game 3 winner vs. No. 1 Wichita State – 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT (ESPN+)
Championship Game - Saturday, May 15
Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner – 2 p.m. ET/1 p.m. CT (ESPN2)