Pac-12 Announces Softball Championship, Head Coach Amy Hogue's Thoughts

SAN FRANCISCO - The Conference of Champions has announced the creation of a Pac-12 Softball Championship event to begin in 2023. The Conference championship will be hosted on Pac-12 campuses and will rotate annually among the league's nine-playing institutions, ultimately providing increased exposure and community engagement for the sport across the Pac-12.

"This is an exciting time for Pac-12 softball. The tournament is something that we have discussed for a while and the time is finally right to make it happen," head coach Amy Hogue said. "I am looking forward to having our athletes experience this type of tournament setting and for our campus to one day have the opportunity to host this amazing event!"

Teams will play once per day, with the four-day event beginning with a play-in game between the eighth and ninth-place teams in the regular-season standings. The play-in winner will advance to an eight-team, single-elimination bracket with the quarterfinals, semifinals and championship being played the following three days. The winner of the Pac-12 Softball Championship will receive the Conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

"The Pac-12 could not be more excited to add a softball championship to its lineup of postseason events," Pac-12 Commissioner George Kliavkoff said. "This new championship will offer student-athletes an amazing experience against top-notch competition, elevate the league's softball brand in advance of the NCAA Tournament, and provide fans the opportunity to celebrate the incredible success of Pac-12 softball with a marquee event on our campuses."

The nation's most successful softball conference, Pac-12 programs have combined to win 24 of the 39 NCAA softball championships all-time, 19 more than the next closest league, and all nine Pac-12 teams have made appearances in the Women's College World Series. Of the 13 different programs to have won an NCAA softball championship, five are from the Pac-12: UCLA (12), Arizona (8), Arizona State (2), California (1), Washington (1).

Pac-12 programs will be featured on Pac-12 Networks 85 times during the upcoming 2022 season, which begins on Thursday, Feb. 10. Additional details about the 2023 Pac-12 Softball Championship will be announced at a later date.