# 1996 NCAA Division I softball season

The 1996 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 1996. The season progressed through the regular season, many conference tournaments and championship series, and concluded with the 1996 NCAA Division I softball tournament and 1996 Women's College World Series. The Women's College World Series, consisting of the eight remaining teams in the NCAA Tournament and held in Columbus, Georgia at Golden Park, ended on May 27, 1996.

## Conference standings

1996 Big 12 Conference softball standings :
| 1996 Big 12 Conference softball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 12 Oklahoma ‍†‍‡‍$^y$ 17–5 .77350–20 .714 No. 15 Oklahoma State ‍†‍‍$^y$ 17–5 .77337–20 .649 Missouri ‍‍‍ 10–8 .55631–22 .585 No. 17 Nebraska ‍‍‍$^y$ 10–8 .55642–23 .646 No. 21 Texas A&M ‍‍‍$^y$ 11–11 .50039–21 .650 Kansas ‍‍‍ 10–12 .45531–26 .544 Iowa State ‍‍‍ 6–13 .31617–28 .378 Texas Tech ‍‍‍ 1–20 .0484–44 .083 † – Conference champion ‡ – Tournament champion y – Invited to the NCAA tournament Rankings from NFCA/USA Today | 1996 Big Ten Conference softball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L T PCTW L T PCT No. 7 Michigan ‍†‍‡‍$^y$ 20–4–0 .83351–14–0 .785 No. 19 Minnesota ‍‍‍$^y$ 17–6–0 .73943–18–0 .705 No. 4 Iowa ‍‍‍$^y$ 17–7–0 .70849–19–0 .721 No. 23 Indiana ‍‍‍$^y$ 16–7–0 .69637–24–0 .607 Michigan State ‍‍‍ 14–10–0 .58337–19–0 .661 Purdue ‍‍‍ 12–11–0 .52236–21–0 .632 Northwestern ‍‍‍ 8–16–0 .33319–33–0 .365 Ohio State ‍‍‍ 6–18–0 .25019–43–0 .306 Penn State ‍‍‍ 5–18–0 .21724–26–0 .480 Wisconsin ‍‍‍ 3–21–0 .12514–39–1 .269 † – Conference champion ‡ – Tournament champion y – Invited to the NCAA tournament As of June 1996 Rankings from NFCA/USA Today | 1996 Pacific-10 Conference softball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 2 Washington ‍†‍‍$^y$ 23–4 .85259–9 .868 No. 1 Arizona ‍‍‍$^y$ 23–5 .82158–9 .866 No. 3 UCLA ‍‍‍$^y$ 20–7 .74147–11 .810 No. 6 California ‍‍‍$^y$ 14–12 .53841–23 .641 Arizona State ‍‍‍ 10–18 .35734–27 .557 Stanford ‍‍‍ 7–19 .26924–29 .453 Oregon ‍‍‍ 5–18 .21721–30 .412 Oregon State ‍‍‍ 3–22 .12015–35 .300 † – Conference champion y – Invited to the NCAA tournament As of May 31, 1996 Rankings from NFCA/USA Today |
| 1996 Southland Conference softball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L T PCTW L T PCT Nicholls State ‍†‍‍$^y$ 19–5–0 .79242–17–1 .708 McNeese State ‍‍‍ 17–7–0 .70831–22–0 .585 Northeast Louisiana ‍‍‍ 15–9–0 .62534–22–0 .607 Texas–San Antonio ‍‍‍ 15–9–0 .62536–20–0 .643 Sam Houston State ‍‍‍ 12–12–0 .50023–25–0 .479 Texas–Arlington ‍‍‍ 10–14–0 .41728–30–0 .483 Southwest Texas State ‍‍‍ 9–15–0 .37518–40–0 .310 Northwestern Louisiana ‍‍‍ 7–17–0 .29210–41–0 .196 Stephen F. Austin ‍‍‍ 4–20–0 .16712–40–0 .231 † – Conference champion y – Invited to the NCAA tournament As of May 20, 1996 Rankings from Coaches' Poll |

## Women's College World Series

The 1996 NCAA Women's College World Series took place from May 23 to May 37, 1996 in Columbus, Georgia. The event was held at the same venue that would later host the softball events of the 1996 Summer Olympics.
| Round of 16 | Round of 16 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | | | Finals | Finals | Finals |
| 1 | Washington | 7 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 8 | Princeton | 1 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 8 | Princeton | 1 | 1 | Washington | 9 | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | 5 | California | 7 | | | | | | | | | |
| 4 | Southwestern Louisiana | 0 | 5 | California | 7 | | | | | | | | | |
| 5 | California | 2 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 5 | California | 2 | | | | 1 | Washington | 8 | — | | | | | |
| | | | | | | 3 | UCLA | 2 | — | | | | | |
| 8 | Princeton | 0 | | | | | | | | 3 | UCLA | 2 | — | | | | |
| 4 | Southwestern Louisiana | 7 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 4 | Southwestern Louisiana | 7 | 3 | UCLA | 3 | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | 4 | Southwestern Louisiana | 2 | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | 1 | Washington | 4 |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | 2 | Arizona | 6 |
| 3 | UCLA | 2 | | | | | | | | | | | | | 2 | Arizona | 6 |
| 6 | Michigan | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 6 | Michigan | 0 | 3 | UCLA | 0 | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | 2 | Arizona | 4 | | | | | | | | | |
| 2 | Arizona | 5 | 2 | Arizona | 4 | | | | | | | | | |
| 7 | Iowa | 2 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 7 | Iowa | 2 | | | | 2 | Arizona | 10$^6$ | — | | | | | |
| | | | | | | 7 | Iowa | 2 | — | | | | | |
| 6 | Michigan | 2 | | | | | | | | 7 | Iowa | 2 | — | | | | |
| 7 | Iowa | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 7 | Iowa | 3 | 5 | California | 0 | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | 7 | Iowa | 1 | | | | | | | | | |

## Season leaders

Batting
* Batting average: .514 – Jennifer Weaver, Towson Tigers
* RBIs: 109 – Jenny Dalton, Arizona Wildcats
* Home runs: 25 – Jenny Dalton, Arizona Wildcats
Pitching
* Wins: 35-6 – Carrie Dolan, Arizona Wildcats
* ERA: 0.48 (16 ER/230.2 IP) – Trinity Johnson, South Carolina Gamecocks
* Strikeouts: 351 – Audrey West, Boston Terriers

## Records

NCAA Division I season doubles: 29 – Nina Lindenberg, Fresno State Bulldogs
NCAA Division I single game stolen bases: 7 – Stacy Hughes, Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles; April 14, 1996
Sophomore class RBIs: 96 – Leticia Pineda, Arizona Wildcats
Senior class season of perfect stolen bases: 47-47 – Gina Freeman, South Carolina Lady Bulldogs
Team doubles: 142 – Tennessee Volunteers

## Awards

* Honda Sports Award Softball:
Jenny Dalton, Arizona Wildcats
| YEAR | G | AB | R | H | BA | RBI | HR | 3B | 2B | TB | SLG | BB | SO | SB | SBA |
| 1996 | 67 | 179 | 84 | 84 | .469 | 109 | 25 | 1 | 12 | 173 | .966% | 64 | 11 | 19 | 20 |

## All America Teams

The following players were members of the All-American Teams.
First Team
| Position | Player | Class | School |
| P | Heather Meyer | SR. | Washington Huskies |
| P | B'Ann Burns | JR. | UCLA Bruins |
| P | Cheryl Longeway | SR. | ULL Rajin' Cajuns |
| C | Leticia Pineda | SO. | Arizona Wildcats |
| 1B | Michelle Church | SR. | Washington Huskies |
| 2B | Jenny Dalton | SR. | Arizona Wildcats |
| 3B | Christine Kubin | SR. | North Carolina Tar Heels |
| SS | Ali Viola | SO. | Nebraska Cornhuskers |
| OF | Alison McCutcheon | JR. | Arizona Wildcats |
| OF | Shamalene Wilson | SR. | FSU Seminoles |
| OF | Rachel Nelson | JR. | Minnesota Golden Gophers |
| DP | Lisa Dacquisto | JR. | Arizona State Sun Devils |
| UT | Sara Griffin | SO. | Michigan Wolverines |
| AT-L | Lindsay Parker | FR. | Fresno State Bulldogs |
| AT-L | Scia Maumausolo | SR. | CSUN Matadors |
| AT-L | Kendall Richards | SR. | Texas A&M Aggies |
| AT-L | Nina Lindenberg | SO. | Fresno State Bulldogs |
| AT-L | Sara Pickering | JR. | Washington Huskies |
Second Team
| Position | Player | Class | School |
| P | Trinity Johnson | JR. | South Carolina Gamecocks |
| P | Susie Bugliarello | JR. | Sacramento State Hornets |
| P | Carrie Dolan | JR. | Arizona Wildcats |
| C | Jennifer Cline | SR. | Washington Huskies |
| 1B | Alleah Poulson | JR. | UCLA Bruins |
| 2B | Cynthia Smith | SR. | Oklahoma State Cowgirls |
| 3B | Krista Gomez | SR. | Arizona Wildcats |
| SS | Keri Lemasters | JR. | Michigan State Spartans |
| OF | Rashunda Taylor | SR. | Nicholls State Colonels |
| OF | Amber Hegland | SO. | Minnesota Golden Gophers |
| OF | Chanda Lee | JR. | South Carolina Gamecocks |
| DP | Tia Morenz | SO. | Hawaii Rainbow Wahine |
| UT | Jennifer Richardson | SR. | CSUN Matadors |
| AT-L | Brandi Shriver | JR. | Arizona Wildcats |
| AT-L | Myssi Calkins | JR. | FSU Seminoles |
| AT-L | Renee Espinoza | SR. | FSU Seminoles |
| AT-L | Jill Most | JR. | Oklahoma Sooners |
| AT-L | Patti Raduenz | SR. | Michigan State Spartans |
Third Team
| Position | Player | Class | School |
| P | Whitney Floyd | JR. | California Golden Bears |
| P | Audrey West | SR. | Boston Terriers |
| P | Gina Ugo | SR. | Indiana Hoosiers |
| C | Stephenie Little | SO. | Oklahoma State Cowgirls |
| 1B | Kari Knopf | JR. | Iowa Hawkeyes |
| 2B | Yvette Healy | FR. | DePaul Blue Demons |
| 3B | Julie Adams | FR. | UCLA Bruins |
| SS | Christy Hebert | JR. | Iowa Hawkeyes |
| OF | Kellyn Tate | SO. | Michigan Wolverines |
| OF | Jenifer Henry | SR. | Fresno State Bulldogs |
| OF | Jamie Foutch | FR. | Oklahoma State Cowgirls |
| DP | Katie Marten | JR. | Notre Dame Fighting Irish |
| UT | Erin Field | SR. | Texas A&M Aggies |
| AT-L | Lynn Britton | SR. | ULL Rajin' Cajuns |
| AT-L | Kim Rondina | JR. | UNLV Rebels |
| AT-L | Carolyn Wilson | SO. | Pacific Tigers |
| AT-L | Tobin Echo-Hawk | SR. | Nebraska Cornhuskers |
| AT-L | Becky Newbry | FR. | Washington Huskies |
| AT-L | Robyn Yorke | JR. | Fresno State Bulldogs |