Information provided from Pac-12 media relations.
The Pac-12 announced on Monday that Arizona’s Hillenbrand Stadium will serve as the host site for the inaugural Pac-12 softball championship, which is set to take place from May 10-13, 2023.
Home of one of the sport’s most storied programs, Hillenbrand Stadium was built in 1993 and underwent an $8 million renovation prior to the 2019 season. More than 1,000,000 patrons have walked through its gates since its opening and the iconic venue attracted 74,028 fans in 2022, the second-best total in the nation.
Teams will play once per day at the 2023 Pac-12 softball championship. The four-day event will begin with a play-in game between the eighth and ninth-place teams in the regular-season standings. That winner will advance to an eight-team, single-elimination bracket with the quarterfinals, semifinals and championship being contested on the following three days. The winner of the Pac-12 softball championship will receive the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
The nation’s most successful softball conference, Pac-12 programs have combined to win 24 of the 40 NCAA softball championships, 18 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).
The conference is coming off of a season in which each of its nine programs finished with a record of .500 or better, seven earned NCAA Tournament berths, and three advanced to the Women’s College World Series.
Recommended for you
