American Athletic Conference Softball Tournament
The American Athletic Conference Softball Tournament is the conference championship tournament in college softball for the American Athletic Conference. It is a single-elimination tournament, with seeding based on regular season records. The winner receives the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division I Softball Championship each season. The Tournament champion is separate from the conference champion. The conference championship is determined solely by regular season record.
| American Athletic Conference Softball Tournament | |
|---|---|
| Conference Softball Championship | |
 American Athletic Conference logo | |
| Sport | Softball |
| Conference | The American |
| Number of teams | 8 |
| Format | Single-elimination tournament |
| Current stadium | East Carolina Softball Complex |
| Current location | Greenville, NC |
| Played | 2014–present |
| Last contest | 2018 |
| Current champion | Tulsa (3) |
| Most championships | Tulsa Golden Hurricane (3) |
| TV partner(s) | ESPN2 |
| Official website | American Softball |
| Host stadiums | |
| USF Softball Stadium (2018) East Carolina Softball Complex (2017) Collins Family Softball Complex (2016) UCF Softball Complex (2015) Cougar Softball Stadium (2014) | |
| Host locations | |
| Tampa, FL (2018) Greenville, NC (2017) Tulsa, OK (2016) Orlando, FL (2015) Houston, TX (2014) | |
The American is one of two successors to the original Big East Conference, which split after the 2013 season. The first year of the tournament was held at Cougar Softball Stadium in Houston, Texas.[1]
Tournament
The American softball tournament is a single-elimination tournament held each year at various American-conference campus stadiums. Eight of the twelve current all-sport members of the conference sponsor softball. Cincinnati, SMU, Temple, and Tulane do not sponsor softball teams.
Champions
Year-by-year
| Year | Champion | Site | MOP |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Louisville | Cougar Softball Stadium • Houston, TX | Katie Keller (2B), Louisville |
| 2015 | UCF | UCF Softball Complex • Orlando, FL | Samantha McCloskey (C), UCF |
| 2016 | Tulsa | Collins Family Softball Complex • Tulsa, OK | Maddie Withee (C), Tulsa |
| 2017 | Tulsa | East Carolina Softball Complex • Greenville, NC | Emily Watson (P), Tulsa |
| 2018 | Tulsa | USF Softball Stadium • Tampa, FL | Emily Watson (P), Tulsa |
| 2019 | Cancelled due to inclement weather | ||
| 2020 | Cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic | ||
By school
| School | Championships | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Tulsa | 3 | 2016, 2017, 2018 |
| Louisville | 1 | 2014 |
| UCF | 1 | 2015 |
| Connecticut | 0 | |
| East Carolina | 0 | |
| Houston | 0 | |
| Memphis | 0 | |
| Rutgers | 0 | |
| South Florida | 0 |
Italics indicate school no longer sponsors softball in The American.
References
- "UH to host American Athletic Conference softball tournament". Houston Chronicle. June 29, 2013. Retrieved June 29, 2013.