# 2016 NCAA Division I softball season

The 2016 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 2016. The season progressed through the regular season, many conference tournaments and championship series, and concluded with the 2016 NCAA Division I softball tournament and 2016 Women's College World Series. The Women's College World Series, consisting of the eight remaining teams in the NCAA Tournament and held annually in Oklahoma City at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium, ended in June 2016.

## Conference standings

2016 American Athletic Conference softball standings :
| 2016 American Athletic Conference softball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 25 South Florida ‍†‍‍$^y$ 15–3 .83345–16 .738 UCF ‍‍‍$^y$ 12–4 .75038–22 .633 Tulsa ‍‍‡‍$^y$ 9–9 .50035–21 .625 Houston ‍‍‍ 9–9 .50027–29 .482 Memphis ‍‍‍ 7–11 .38926–31 .456 East Carolina ‍‍‍ 5–13 .27823–31 .426 UConn ‍‍‍ 4–12 .25019–33 .365 † – Conference champion ‡ – Tournament champion y – Invited to the NCAA tournament As of May 23, 2016 Rankings from Today/NFCA Coaches | 2016 Big 12 Conference softball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 1 Oklahoma ‍†‍‍$^y$ 17–1 .94457–8 .877 No. 21 Baylor ‍‍‍$^y$ 13–4 .76545–14 .763 Texas ‍‍‍$^y$ 10–7 .58838–16 .704 Kansas ‍‍‍ 8–9 .47131–20 .608 Oklahoma State ‍‍‍$^y$ 6–11 .35332–26 .552 Texas Tech ‍‍‍ 6–12 .33323–32 .418 Iowa State ‍‍‍ 1–17 .05620–35 .364 † – Conference champion y – Invited to the NCAA tournament Rankings from NFCA | 2016 Big East Conference softball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT DePaul ‍†‍‍ 16–3 .84227–25 .519 Villanova ‍‍‍ 14–6 .70032–18 .640 St. John's ‍‍‍ 12–7 .63229–20 .592 Butler ‍‍‡‍$^y$ 9–7 .56328–24 .538 Creighton ‍‍‍ 7–11 .38925–22 .532 Seton Hall ‍‍‍ 7–12 .36824–30 .444 Providence ‍‍‍ 6–14 .30021–28 .429 Georgetown ‍‍‍ 3–14 .1769–35 .205 † – Conference champion ‡ – Tournament champion y – Invited to the NCAA tournament As of June 30, 2016 Rankings from NFCA |
| 2016 Big Ten Conference softball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 5 Michigan ‍†‍‍$^y$ 21–2 .91352–7 .881 No. 20 Minnesota ‍‍‡‍$^y$ 19–3 .86443–14 .754 Northwestern ‍‍‍$^y$ 15–8 .65227–28 .491 Penn State ‍‍‍ 14–9 .60930–24 .556 Nebraska ‍‍‍$^y$ 13–9 .59135–21 .625 Ohio State ‍‍‍$^y$ 13–9 .59134–20 .630 Illinois ‍‍‍$^y$ 12–11 .52236–23 .610 Wisconsin ‍‍‍ 11–11 .50028–24 .538 Indiana ‍‍‍ 10–13 .43529–25 .537 Michigan State ‍‍‍ 8–15 .34827–28 .491 Purdue ‍‍‍ 8–15 .34827–28 .491 Rutgers ‍‍‍ 8–15 .34824–33 .421 Maryland ‍‍‍ 4–19 .17412–40 .231 Iowa ‍‍‍ 3–20 .13013–39 .250 † – Conference champion ‡ – Tournament champion y – Invited to the NCAA tournament As of June 6, 2016 Rankings from NFCA | 2016 Colonial Athletic Association softball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L T PCTW L T PCT #8 James Madison ‍†‍‡‍$^y$ 18–1–0 .94750–6–0 .893 Towson ‍‍‍ 11–8–0 .57937–17–0 .685 College of Charleston ‍‍‍ 11–9–0 .55035–23–0 .603 Elon ‍‍‍ 9–8–0 .52926–25–0 .510 Delaware ‍‍‍ 9–9–0 .50030–21–0 .588 UNC Wilmington ‍‍‍ 8–10–0 .44429–21–0 .580 Hofstra ‍‍‍ 8–10–0 .44424–22–0 .522 Drexel ‍‍‍ 0–19–0 .00020–35–0 .364 † – Conference champion ‡ – Tournament champion As of May 24, 2016 Rankings from USA Today/NFCA Coaches | 2016 Ohio Valley Conference softball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT Jacksonville State ‡ ‍‍‍ 26–0 1.00043–17 .717 Eastern Kentucky ‍‍‍ 17–8 .68037–17 .685 Eastern Illinois ‍‍‍ 17–8 .68025–28 .472 SIU Edwardsville ‍‍‍ 15–11 .57728–26 .519 Tennessee–Martin ‍‍‍ 14–13 .51930–26 .536 Tennessee Tech ‍‍‍ 14–13 .51923–33 .411 Morehead State ‍‍‍ 11–11 .50026–27 .491 Murray State ‍‍‍ 12–14 .46214–31 .311 Belmont ‍‍‍ 11–16 .40719–35 .352 SE Missouri State ‍‍‍ 10–17 .37016–33 .327 Austin Peay ‍‍‍ 5–22 .1859–387 .023 Tennessee State ‍‍‍ 3–22 .12010–45 .182 ‡ – OVC Tournament champion As of May 9, 2016 Rankings from USA Today/NFCA Coaches |
| 2016 Southeastern Conference softball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 1 Florida ‍‍‍ 20–4 .83352–4 .929 No. 12 Kentucky ‍‍‍ 17–7 .70843–11 .796 No. 10 Tennessee ‍‍‍ 16–7 .69640–13 .755 No. 6 Auburn ‍‍‡‍ 16–7 .69646–9 .836 No. 4 Alabama ‍‍‍ 16–8 .66745–11 .804 No. 16 Missouri ‍‍‍ 14–10 .58339–13 .750 No. 13 LSU ‍‍‍ 13–11 .54242–14 .750 No. 15 Georgia ‍‍‍ 12–12 .50040–16 .714 Ole Miss ‍‍‍ 11–13 .45838–19 .667 No. 17 Texas A&M ‍‍‍ 9–15 .37537–17 .685 South Carolina ‍‍‍ 7–17 .29235–20 .636 Mississippi State ‍‍‍ 3–21 .12525–30 .455 Arkansas ‍‍‍ 1–23 .04217–39 .304 ‡ – Tournament champion As of May 8, 2016 Rankings from NFCA | 2016 Southland Conference softball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT East Division McNeese State ** $^x$‍‍‡‍$^y$ 23–4 .85242–12 .778 Nicholls ‍‍‍ 21–5 .80839–17 .696 Lamar ‍‍‍ 18–9 .66735–22 .614 Central Arkansas ‍‍‍ 16–11 .59335–22 .614 Northwestern State ‍‍‍ 10–17 .37027–25 .519 Southeastern Louisiana ‍‍‍ 6–21 .22223–32 .418 West Division Abilene Christian * $^x$‍‍‍ 19–8 .70426–21 .553 Stephen F. Austin ‍‍‍ 13–13 .50028–29 .491 Sam Houston ‍‍‍ 13–14 .48121–33 .389 Texas A&M–Corpus Christi ‍‍‍ 7–19 .26918–30 .375 Houston Baptist ‍‍‍ 7–19 .26915–29 .341 Incarnate Word * ‍‍‍ 7–20 .25918–34 .346 ‡ – SLC Tournament Champion *ineligible for postseason play due to Div. I transition **Southland Tournament #1 seed champion As of May 13, 2016 Rankings from USA Today/NFCA Coaches | 2016 Sun Belt Conference softball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L PCTW L PCT No. 12 Louisiana–Lafayette ‍†‍‡‍$^y$ 21–2 .91346–9 .836 South Alabama ‍‍‍ 17–6 .73933–18 .647 Texas State ‍‍‍$^y$ 15–9 .62540–22 .645 Georgia State ‍‍‍ 13–11 .54233–28 .541 Georgia Southern ‍‍‍ 13–11 .54230–27 .526 Troy ‍‍‍ 11–13 .45831–25 .554 UT Arlington ‍‍‍ 8–16 .33329–20 .592 Louisiana–Monroe ‍‍‍ 7–17 .29224–34 .414 Appalachian State ‍‍‍ 2–22 .08311–45 .196 ‡ – Tournament champion As of March 18, 2019 Rankings from NFCA |
| 2016 West Coast Conference softball standings vteConfOverall TeamW L T PCTW L T PCT BYU ‍†‍‍$^y$ 11–2–0 .84636–20–0 .643 Loyola Marymount ‍‍‍ 10–5–0 .66732–21–0 .604 San Diego ‍‍‍ 7–6–0 .53821–28–0 .429 Saint Mary's ‍‍‍ 6–7–0 .46219–26–1 .424 Santa Clara ‍‍‍ 4–9–0 .3089–40–0 .184 Pacific ‍‍‍ 3–12–0 .20020–28–0 .417 † – Conference champion y – Invited to the NCAA tournament As of June 17, 2016 Rankings from USA Today/NFCA Coaches |

## Women's College World Series

The 2016 Women's College World Series began on June 2–8 in Oklahoma City.
| First round | First round | First round | Second round | Second round | Second round | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | | | Finals | Finals | Finals | Finals | Finals | |
| 16 | Georgia | 5 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 8 | Florida State | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 8 | Florida State | 4 | 16 | Georgia | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | 4 | Auburn | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 4 | Auburn | 10 | 4 | Auburn | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 12 | UCLA | 3 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 12 | UCLA | 3 | | | | 4 | Auburn | 8$^{(8)}$ | — | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | 8 | Florida State | 7 | — | | | | | | | | |
| 8 | Florida State | 8 | | | | | | | | 8 | Florida State | 7 | — | | | | | | | | |
| 12 | UCLA | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 12 | UCLA | 4 | 2 | Michigan | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | 8 | Florida State | 1 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | 4 | Auburn | 2 | 11$^{(8)}$ | 1 | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | 3 | Oklahoma | 3 | 7 | 2 | |
| 3 | Oklahoma | 3$^{(8)}$ | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 3 | Oklahoma | 3 | 7 | 2 |
| 6 | Alabama | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 6 | Alabama | 0 | 3 | Oklahoma | 7 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | 2 | Michigan | 5 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 2 | Michigan | 2 | 2 | Michigan | 5 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 10 | LSU | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 10 | LSU | 0 | | | | 3 | Oklahoma | 7 | — | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | 10 | LSU | 3 | — | | | | | | | | |
| 6 | Alabama | 4 | | | | | | | | 10 | LSU | 3 | — | | | | | | | | |
| 10 | LSU | 6 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 10 | LSU | 6 | 16 | Georgia | 1 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| | | | 10 | LSU | 4 | | | | | | | | | | | | |

## Season leaders

Batting
* Batting average: .504 – Danielle Smith, Coppin State Eagles
* RBIs: 87 – Tina Iosefa, Georgia Bulldogs
* Home runs: 23 – Tina Iosefa, Georgia Bulldogs & Morgan Noad, Coastal Carolina Chanticleers
Pitching
* Wins: 38-3 – Paige Parker, Oklahoma Sooners
* ERA: 0.76 (24 ER/221.0 IP) – Kylee Hanson, Florida Atlantic Owls
* Strikeouts: 336 – Savannah Jo Dorsey, Ohio Bobcats & Sara Groenewegen, Minnesota Golden Gophers

## Records

NCAA Division I single game intentional walks: 5 – Darian Tautalafua, Long Beach State 49ers; May 8, 2016
NCAA Division I single game total bases: 17 – Carli Kayler, Troy Trojans; March 19, 2016
Freshman class hits: 104 – Tatyana Forbes, Coastal Carolina Chanticleers

## Awards

* USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year:
Sierra Romero, Michigan Wolverines
* NFCA National Player of the Year:
Sierra Romero, Michigan Wolverines
* Honda Sports Award Softball:
Sierra Romero, Michigan Wolverines
| YEAR | G | AB | R | H | BA | RBI | HR | 3B | 2B | TB | SLG | BB | SO | SB | SBA |
| 2016 | 59 | 162 | 76 | 73 | .450 | 79 | 19 | 1 | 11 | 143 | .882% | 52 | 12 | 15 | 17 |
* espnW National Player of the Year:
Kasey Cooper, Auburn Tigers
| YEAR | G | AB | R | H | BA | RBI | HR | 3B | 2B | TB | SLG | BB | SO | SB | SBA |
| 2016 | 70 | 187 | 69 | 79 | .422 | 83 | 21 | 1 | 19 | 163 | .871% | 71 | 15 | 6 | 7 |
* NFCA National Freshman of the Year:
Amanda Lorenz, Florida Gators
| YEAR | G | AB | R | H | BA | RBI | HR | 3B | 2B | TB | SLG | BB | SO | SB | SBA |
| 2016 | 63 | 181 | 56 | 73 | .403 | 48 | 8 | 1 | 14 | 113 | .624% | 48 | 19 | 10 | 12 |
* NFCA Catcher of the Year:
Lexie Elkins, Louisiana
* NFCA Golden Shoe Award:
Katie Lacour, Southeastern Louisiana

## All America Teams

The following players were members of the All-American Teams.
First Team
| Position | Player | Class | School |
| P | Delanie Gourley | JR. | Florida Gators |
| P | Paige Parker | SO. | Oklahoma Sooners |
| P | Megan Good | SO. | James Madison Dukes |
| C | Lexie Elkins | SR. | ULL Ragin' Cajuns |
| 1B | Tera Blanco | SO. | Michigan Wolverines |
| 2B | Sierra Romero | SR. | Michigan Wolverines |
| 3B | Kasey Cooper | JR. | Auburn Tigers |
| SS | Kristen Brown | SR. | North Carolina Tar Heels |
| OF | Haylie McCleney | SR. | Alabama Crimson Tide |
| OF | Emily Crane | SR. | Missouri Tigers |
| OF | Koral Costa | SR. | Oregon Ducks |
| UT | Jailyn Ford | SR. | James Madison Dukes |
| UT | Kimberlee Souza | SR. | Washington Huskies |
| AT-L | Sierra Lawrence | SR. | Michigan Wolverines |
| AT-L | Aleshia Ocasio | SO. | Florida Gators |
| AT-L | Sara Groenewegen | JR. | Minnesota Golden Gophers |
| AT-L | Kelsey Nunley | SR. | Kentucky Wildcats |
| AT-L | Marjani Knighten | JR. | Nebraska Cornhuskers |
Second Team
| Position | Player | Class | School |
| P | Kylee Hanson | JR. | FAU Owls |
| P | Megan Betsa | JR. | Michigan Wolverines |
| P | Alex Stewart | JR. | ULL Ragin' Cajuns |
| C | Erika Piancastelli | SO. | McNeese State Cowgirls |
| 1B | Alex Powers | JR. | FSU Seminoles |
| 2B | Emily Carosone | SR. | Auburn Tigers |
| 3B | Mysha Sataraka | SR. | UCLA Bruins |
| SS | Delaney Spaulding | JR. | UCLA Bruins |
| OF | Aleah Craighton | SO. | ULL Ragin' Cajuns |
| OF | Erin Miller | SR. | Oklahoma Sooners |
| OF | Lindsey Stephens | SR. | Texas Longhorns |
| UT | Erica Nunn | SR. | USF Bulls |
| UT | Kayli Kvistad | SO. | Florida Gators |
| AT-L | Sydney Littlejohn | JR. | Alabama Crimson Tide |
| AT-L | Nikki Udria | JR. | Oregon Ducks |
| AT-L | Shay Knighten | FR. | Oklahoma Sooners |
| AT-L | Leona Lafaele | SR. | Alabama Crimson Tide |
| AT-L | Ali Aguilar | JR. | Washington Huskies |
Third Team
| Position | Player | Class | School |
| P | Cheridan Hawkins | SR. | Oregon Ducks |
| P | Jessica Burroughs | JR. | FSU Seminoles |
| P | Nisa Ontiveros | SR. | California Golden Bears |
| C | Emily Naegele | SR. | Northern Illinois Huskies |
| 1B | Jade Rhodes | SR. | Auburn Tigers |
| 2B | Hannah Flippen | JR. | Utah Utes |
| 3B | Bianka Bell | SR. | LSU Tigers |
| SS | Sami Fagan | SR. | Missouri Tigers |
| OF | Amanda Lorenz | FR. | Florida Gators |
| OF | Karley Wester | JR. | Notre Dame Fighting Irish |
| OF | Allexis Bennett | SR. | UCLA Bruins |
| UT | Rainey Gaffin | SR. | Tennessee Lady Vols |
| UT | Cammi Prantl | SR. | Ohio State Buckeyes |
| AT-L | Tina Iosefa | SR. | Georgia Bulldogs |
| AT-L | Vanessa Shippy | SO. | Oklahoma State Cowgirls |
| AT-L | Jessica Warren | SO. | FSU Seminoles |
| AT-L | Victoria Vidales | SO. | Texas A&M Aggies |
| AT-L | Sahvanna Jaquish | JR. | LSU Tigers |
| AT-L | Kiki Stokes | SR. | Nebraska Cornhuskers |
| AT-L | Taylor Glover | JR. | CSUN Matadors |