12 SEC teams to play in 2022 NCAA Softball Championship

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (May 15, 2022) - Twelve teams from the Southeastern Conference were selected to compete in the 2022 NCAA Division I Softball Championship.

The SEC earned five national seeds, including two of the top six. Arkansas (44-9), the 2022 SEC Regular-Season and Tournament Champion, earned the No. 4 seed. Alabama (41-11) was awarded the No. 6 seed, while Tennessee (39-16) was tabbed the No. 11 seed. Florida (43-16) was tabbed the No. 14 seed, and Missouri (36-20) garnered the No. 15 seed.

In addition, Auburn (39-15) earned a spot in the Clemson Regional, and Georgia (40-16) will play in the Durham Regional. Kentucky (35-17) is slated to compete in the Blacksburg Regional, while LSU (34-21) will be a part of the Tempe Regional. Ole Miss (39-17) is headed to the Los Angeles Regional, and Mississippi State (33-24) is set to compete at the Tallahassee Regional. Texas A&M (29-26) was selected to play at the Norman Regional.

Regionals will be held May 20-22 on 16 campus sites. At each campus site, a four- team, double-elimination tournament will be conducted, and the 16 winning teams advance to the super regionals. Super regionals for the championship will be held May 26-29 on eight campus sites. At each site, two teams play in a best-of-three tournament format. The winners from each super regional advance to the NCAA® Women's College World Series (WCWS) from June 2-9/10 at OGE Energy Field at the USA Softball Hall of Fame Complex in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

Since 1997, the SEC has had nine teams advance to the Women's College World Series: Alabama (2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2021), Auburn (2015, 2016), Florida (2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019), Georgia (2009, 2010, 2016, 2018, 2021), Kentucky (2014), LSU (2001, 2004, 2012, 2015, 2016, 2017), South Carolina (2007), Tennessee (2005, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015) and Texas A&M (2017).

Thirteen schools have been crowned the NCAA Division I softball champion since the tournament started in 1982, with two SEC schools among the winners on that list. Alabama claimed the first national championship in SEC history when it downed Oklahoma, 5-4, on June 7, 2012. Florida defeated Alabama in the best-of-three series in 2014 and then became the third program in NCAA softball history to win back-to-back national titles after defeating Michigan in the 2015 WCWS Championship Series.

SITES/PAIRINGS (*Indicates Host Institution, SEC teams in bold):

Norman Regional - at Norman, Oklahoma
No. 1 seed Oklahoma* (49-2) vs. Prairie View A&M (20-28)
Texas A&M (29-26) vs. Minnesota (26-24-1)

Tempe Regional - at Tempe, Arizona
No. 8 seed Arizona State* (39-9) vs. Cal State Fullerton (36-20)
LSU (34-21) vs. San Diego State (37-14)

Los Angeles Regional - at Los Angeles, California
No. 5 seed UCLA* (43-8) vs. Grand Canyon (38-14)
Ole Miss (39-17) vs. Loyola Marymount University (36-15)

Durham Regional - at Durham, North Carolina
No. 12 seed Duke* (41-8) vs. UMBC (31-10)
Georgia (40-16) vs. Liberty (43-16)

Fayetteville Regional - at Fayetteville, Arkansas
No. 4 seed Arkansas* (44-9) vs. Princeton (27-15-2)
Oregon (31-17) vs. Wichita State (33-16)

Blacksburg Regional - at Blacksburg, Virginia
No. 3 seed Virginia Tech* (41-7) vs. Saint Francis (Pa.) (37-16)
Kentucky (35-17) vs. Miami (OH) (39-15-1)

Gainesville Regional - at Gainesville, Florida
No. 14 seed Florida* (43-16) vs. Canisius (32-16)
Georgia Tech (37-16) vs. Wisconsin (28-19)

Knoxville Regional - at Knoxville, Tennessee
No. 11 seed Tennessee* (39-16) vs. Campbell (37-17)
Ohio State (35-15) vs. Oregon State (33-19)

Tuscaloosa Regional - at Tuscaloosa, Alabama
No. 6 seed Alabama* (41-11) vs. Chattanooga (29-25)
Stanford (36-19) vs. Murray State (40-16-1)

Clemson Regional - at Clemson, South Carolina
No. 10 seed Clemson* (39-15) vs. UNC Wilmington (32-13)
Auburn (39-15) vs. Louisiana (45-11)

Columbia Regional - at Columbia, Missouri
No. 15 seed Missouri* (36-20) vs. Missouri State (27-18)
Illinois (34-20) vs. Arizona (33-20)

Tallahassee Regional - at Tallahassee, Florida
No. 2 seed Florida St.* (52-5) vs. Howard (31-22)
Mississippi State (33-24) vs. South Florida (44-14)