Skip to main content

2017 NCAA Softball Tournament Geospatial Map

We're back once again with our annual geospatial map of where the 64 teams have been sent for regional play in the first weekend. This map allows you to see the extent to which the NCAA has kept regionals compact to save on travel costs, as opposed to sending teams across the country. For the last couple of years, I have used the Batch Geo website, which allows one to import an Excel list of schools (with addresses) and then generates a color-coded map, grouping schools by regional.

There are 16 regional sites, each containing four schools, which would probably create too much clutter for most readers' tastes, so I have broken the regionals up into three graphs, one with six regionals and the other two with five each. The regional hosts are identified in a black horizontal bar at the bottom of each graph.

"Balloons" of the same color within the same graph represent schools playing in the same regional. You can "hover" the cursor over a given balloon and the school's name will appear. There are additional tools on the graphs, allowing you to manipulate them in various ways.


View 2017 NCAA Softball Regions 1 in a full screen map


View 2017 NCAA Softball Regions 2 in a full screen map


View 2017 NCAA Softball Regions 3 in a full screen map

Getting to the substance of the NCAA committee's decisions, the biggest shocker of the evening is that Minnesota, ranked No. 2/3 in the final national polls and sporting a 54-3 record, did not receive one of the 16 national seeds. As a result, the Gophers will have to travel to 16-seed Alabama for regional play (see Map 1 above). As noted on ESPN's Tournament Selection Show, Minnesota was ranked No. 12 in the RPI, but had only two wins all year over teams ranked in the Top 25 (but not the Top 10) when they faced the Gophers, LSU and Cal. Minnesota did not play traditional B1G power Michigan (No. 17 in both polls) this season, as not everybody can play each other in a 14-team league; also, the Wolverines bowed out of the conference tourney before they could face Minnesota. Playing -- and beating -- Michigan might have gotten Minnesota a national seed, but we'll never know.

Also of note, the SEC got all 13 of its softball-playing schools into the tournament. According to the SEC website:

The SEC earned eight national seeds, as SEC regular season champion Florida (50-6) earned the national No. 1 seed for the third straight year. Auburn (46-10) earned the No. 7 seed, while Tennessee (44-10) was awarded the No. 8 seed. Texas A&M (42-10) is the No. 9 seed, and SEC Tournament Champion Ole Miss (40-18) is the No. 12 national seed. LSU (41-18) is the No. 13 seed, and Kentucky (36-17) was tabbed the No. 14 seed. Alabama (42-16) rounds out the list as the No. 16 seed.

Arizona seemed to stumble a little bit down the stretch, going a combined 6-6 in series vs. Utah, Oregon, ASU, and UCLA (including two shutout losses to the Bruins). However, that didn't stop U of A from getting the No. 2 national seed. 

Rounding out the top six national seeds are (in order) Oregon, Florida State, UCLA, and Washington, giving the Pac 12 four of the six highest seeds. In addition, eight of the Pac 12's nine softball-playing schools made the NCAA field (Stanford was left out).

Popular posts from this blog

Jordy Bahl Transferring from Oklahoma to Nebraska

The college softball world has thrown us a "Curve Bahl," if you will. Such is the unexpected news that Oklahoma ace Jordy Bahl has announced that she will transfer to the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. Bahl is from the Omaha suburb of Papillion, Nebraska. Three thoughts jump out at me: Bahl was absolutely indispensable to the Sooners' 61-1 national championship season, coming up with numerous clutch strikeouts in tight tournament games against Clemson (super-regionals, Game 2 ) and Stanford ( WCWS semifinals ).    OU benefited greatly this season via the transfer portal, bringing in Haley Lee  from Texas A&M,  Alex Storako from Michigan, and Cydney Sanders and Alynah Torres from Arizona State. Bahl's transfer is the first major one in the modern portal era (to my knowledge) in the other direction. Nebraska becomes an instant national championship contender, in my mind. Other players around the country may find it attractive to join Bahl in Lincoln but even if

2023 WCWS -- Day 4

Two elimination games are scheduled for today: Stanford vs. Washington, in an all-Pac 12 matchup (2:00 pm Central, ABC) and Oklahoma State vs. Tennessee (6 pm, ESPN2). Oklahoma State and Tennessee underway, scoreless as the Cowgirls bat in the top of the second... A two-out walk gives OSU runners at first and second... Full count... Soft pop-up to pitcher ends Cowgirl threat... Tennessee SS Mackenzie Donihoo with nice catch going back into shallow left ( video )... Still scoreless as Vols come up B3... Walk, steal, and Zaida Puni oppo double score first run, UT leads 1-0... Walk and single increase Vols' lead to 2-0 . Lexi Kilfoyl replacing Kelly Maxwell in the circle for Cowgirls... Tennessee with runners at second and third with one out... Walk to load bases... Grounder back to pitcher, gets force at the plate... Another grounder to the pitcher, this time she throws batter out at first... T4, OSU two-out rally, with single and double but runner thrown out at the plate ... Tennes

2023 WCWS -- Day 1

The 2023 Women's College World Series is underway. Today's schedule features a quadruple  triple-header of action. Due to weather delays and lateness in the evening of the Florida State-Oklahoma State game completion, the Washington-Utah game has been delayed until Friday afternoon... Game 3 between Oklahoma State and Florida State is in a weather delay... Game starts, with OSU going scoreless in top of first... B1, FSU's Michaela Edenfield blasts no-doubter two-run homer to left ( video ), 2-0 Seminoles... T2, Cowgirls threatening with runners on first and second and one out... Pop to SS for second out... Foul-out near left field to end threat... T3, one out... Another weather delay (minimum 40 minutes) due to lightning in the area... Florida State wins 8-0 in a six-inning, run-rule outcome... Game 2, between Stanford -- with ace pitcher NiJaree Canady going -- and Oklahoma -- starting Jordy Bahl in the circle --  is scoreless after one... Still scoreless after three