# 1986 NCAA Division I softball season

The 1986 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 1986. The season progressed through the regular season, many conference tournaments and championship series, and concluded with the 1986 NCAA Division I softball tournament and 1986 Women's College World Series. The Women's College World Series, consisting of the eight remaining teams in the NCAA Tournament and held in Omaha, Nebraska at Seymour Smith Park, ended on May 25, 1986.

## Conference standings

1986 Big Ten Conference softball standings :
| 1986 Big Ten Conference softball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L T PCTW L T PCT Indiana ‍†‍‍$^y$ 15–9–0 .62545–18–0 .714 Northwestern ‍†‍‍$^y$ 15–9–0 .62533–17–0 .660 Minnesota ‍†‍‍ 15–9–0 .62528–23–0 .549 Michigan State ‍‍‍ 14–10–0 .58329–20–0 .592 Michigan ‍‍‍ 12–12–0 .50032–17–0 .653 Iowa ‍‍‍ 10–14–0 .41726–19–0 .578 Ohio State ‍‍‍ 3–21–0 .12512–33–1 .272 † – Conference champion y – Invited to the NCAA tournament Rankings from Coaches' Poll | 1986 Pacific Coast Athletic Association softball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L T PCTW L T PCT Cal State Fullerton ‍†‍‍$^y$ 22–5–1 .80457–9–1 .858 Long Beach State ‍‍‍$^y$ 18–9–0 .66739–18–0 .684 Cal Poly Pomona ‍‍‍$^y$ 18–9–1 .66136–19–1 .652 Pacific ‍‍‍$^y$ 17–10–0 .63034–18–1 .651 UC Santa Barbara ‍‍‍ 11–17–0 .39320–30–0 .400 UNLV ‍‍‍ 10–17–0 .37018–32–0 .360 San Diego State ‍‍‍ 6–21–0 .22222–36–0 .379 Hawaii ‍‍‍ 7–21–0 .2509–27–0 .250 † – Conference champion y – Invited to the NCAA tournament | 1986 Southland Conference softball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Southwestern Louisiana ‍†‍‍ 10–2 .83330–19 .612 Texas–Arlington ‍‍‍ 10–2 .83325–25 .500 Lamar ‍‍‍ 8–4 .66716–19 .457 McNeese State ‍‍‍ 6–6 .50019–24 .442 North Texas ‍‍‍ 5–7 .4179–25 .265 Northeast Louisiana ‍‍‡‍ 3–9 .25017–32 .347 Arkansas State ‍‍‍ 0–12 .0003–28 .097 † – Conference champion ‡ – Tournament champion y – Invited to the NCAA tournament As of May 20, 1986 Rankings from Coaches' Poll |

## Women's College World Series

The 1986 NCAA Women's College World Series took place May 21–25, 1986 in Omaha, Nebraska.
| Upper round 1 | Upper round 1 | Upper round 1 | Upper round 2 | Upper round 2 | Upper round 2 | Upper final | Upper final | Upper final | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | | Final | Final | Final |
| Northwestern | Northwestern | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| California | California | 2 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| California | California | 2 | California | California | 0 | | | | | | | | |
| | | | Cal State Fullerton | Cal State Fullerton | 3 | | | | | | | | |
| Cal State Fullerton | Cal State Fullerton | 1$^9$ | Cal State Fullerton | Cal State Fullerton | 3 | | | | | | | | |
| Long Beach State | Long Beach State | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Long Beach State | Long Beach State | 0 | | | | Cal State Fullerton | Cal State Fullerton | 3 | | | | | |
| | | | | | | Texas A&M | Texas A&M | 0 | | | | | | | |
| Texas A&M | Texas A&M | 1$^{10}$ | | | | Texas A&M | Texas A&M | 0 | | | | | |
| Texas A&M | Texas A&M | 1$^{10}$ | | | | | | | Cal State Fullerton | Cal State Fullerton | 3$^8$ | | |
| Creighton | Creighton | 0 | | | | | | | Cal State Fullerton | Cal State Fullerton | 3$^8$ | | |
| Creighton | Creighton | 0 | Texas A&M | Texas A&M | 6 | | | | Indiana | Indiana | 1 | | |
| | | | Indiana | Indiana | 0 | | | | | | | | | | |
| Indiana | Indiana | 1$^{10}$ | Indiana | Indiana | 0 | | | | | | | | |
| Louisiana Tech | Louisiana Tech | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | Cal State Fullerton | Cal State Fullerton | 3 |
| | | | Lower round 1 | Lower round 1 | Lower round 1 | Lower round 2 | Lower round 2 | Lower round 2 | | | | | Texas A&M | Texas A&M | 0 |
| | | | | | | Indiana | Indiana | | | | | | 2$^{10}$ |
| | | | Northwestern | Northwestern | 0 | Long Beach State | Long Beach State | | | | | | 0 |
| | | | Northwestern | Northwestern | 0 | Long Beach State | Long Beach State | | Texas A&M | Texas A&M | 1$^{10}$ | | 0 |
| | | | Long Beach State | Long Beach State | 1$^{10}$ | | | | Texas A&M | Texas A&M | 1$^{10}$ | |
| | | | Long Beach State | Long Beach State | 1$^{10}$ | | | | California | California | 0 | |
| | | | | | | California | California | | California | California | 0 | 1$^8$ | |
| | | | Creighton | Creighton | 4$^{13}$ | Creighton | Creighton | | | | | 0 | |
| | | | Louisiana Tech | Louisiana Tech | 3 | | | | | | | | | | |

## Season leaders

Batting
* Batting average: .453 – Jackie Nietopski, Niagara Purple Eagles
* RBIs: 41 – Debbi Oraczewski, Towson Tigers, Jeanne Weinsheim, San Diego Toreros & Melanie Marshall, Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles
* Home runs: 10 – Debbi Oraczewski, Towson Tigers
Pitching
* Wins: 35-9 – Stacey Johnson, Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters
* ERA: 0.18 (4 ER/153.1 IP) – Connie Clark, Cal State Fullerton Titans
* Strikeouts: 370 – Amy Unterbrink, Indiana Hoosiers

## Records

NCAA Division I season WHIP: 0.36 (58 H+13 BB/195.0 IP) – Virginia Augusta, North Carolina Tar Heels
NCAA Division I single game triples: 3 – Lynna Hallick, Northwestern Wildcats; April 18, 1986
Junior class perfect games: 3 – Virginia Augusta, North Carolina Tar Heels
Team single game triples: 7 – UMass Minutewomen; March 17, 1986

## Awards

* Honda Sports Award Softball:
Susan LeFebvre, Cal State Fullerton Titans
| YEAR | W | L | GP | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | ERA | WHIP |
| 1986 | 31 | 6 | 39 | 36 | 34 | 25 | 0 | 284.2 | 106 | 18 | 11 | 59 | 208 | 0.27 | 0.58 |

## All America Teams

The following players were members of the first All-American Teams.
First Team
| Position | Player | Class | School |
| P | Stacey Johnson | SR. | Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters |
| P | Amy Unterbrink | SR. | Indiana Hoosiers |
| P | Susan LeFebvre | SR. | Cal State Fullerton Titans |
| C | Alicia Seegert | JR. | Michigan Wolverines |
| 1B | Kathy Dyer | SR. | New Mexico Lobos |
| 2B | Alison Stowell | SO. | Cal Poly Pomona Broncos |
| 3B | Cindy Cooper | SR. | Texas A&M Aggies |
| SS | Leslie Kanter | SR. | USF Bulls |
| OF | Kathy Escarcega | JR. | Arizona State Sun Devils |
| OF | Chenita Rogers | JR. | Cal State Fullerton Titans |
| OF | Karleen Moore | SR. | Indiana Hoosiers |
| UT | Tracy Bunge | SR. | Kansas Jayhawks |
Second Team
| Position | Player | Class | School |
| P | Lori Sippel | SO. | Nebraska Cornhuskers |
| P | Melanie Parrent | SO. | Fresno State Bulldogs |
| P | Rhonda Wheatley | JR. | Cal Poly Pomona Broncos |
| C | Kelly Downs | JR. | Kansas Jayhawks |
| 1B | Gena Strang | SO. | Fresno State Bulldogs |
| 2B | Lori Richins | JR. | Nebraska Cornhuskers |
| 3B | Mary Hammen | SO. | Oklahoma State Cowgirls |
| SS | Kelly Smith | JR. | Utah State Aggies |
| OF | Sheila Connelly | JR. | Kansas Jayhawks |
| OF | Kris Schmidt | SO. | Missouri Tigers |
| OF | Sally Mahar | SR. | UMass Minutewomen |
| UT | Barb Drake | JR. | Minnesota Golden Gophers |