- More than 600 Games on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SEC Network, Longhorn Network, ESPN3 and SEC Network +
- Back-to-Back National Champion and No. 1 Florida Gators Featured More than 35 Times
- ACC, American, Atlantic Sun, Big South, Horizon League, Missouri Valley, SEC, Southern, Southland and Sun Belt Conference Championship Games
- Former College, Olympic and Professionals Among Analysts
Coming off last season’s Women’s College World Series record ratings, ESPN will offer its most comprehensive NCAA Division I Softball schedule in 2016 with more than 600 games carried across ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SEC Network, Longhorn Network, ESPN3, and SEC Network +. The regular season concludes with championship games from the ACC, American, Atlantic Sun, Big South, Horizon League, Mid-American Conference, Missouri Valley, SEC, Southern and Southland conferences, leading into the NCAA Division I Softball Championship.
ESPNU/ESPN2
ESPNU and ESPN2 will begin their slate featuring the back-to-back National Champion Florida Gators hosting No. 20 Tennessee (March 18) and traveling to No. 6 LSU (March 26). Overall, the schedule will feature 17 ranked teams including 16 appearances from top 10 teams; approximately 90% of the total games feature a ranked team. Additional highlights:
- Best vs. Best: 19 games will feature a ranked team vs. another ranked team including:
- 2 Alabama at No. 1 Florida (April 2)
- 13 Oklahoma at No. 20 Tennessee (April 23)
- 15 UCLA at No. 18 Arizona (April 24)
- 18 Arizona at No. 8 Oregon (May 1)
- 9 Texas A&M at No. 4 Auburn (May 7)
- 11 Georgia at No. 2 Alabama (May 7)
- Championship Games: ACC, American and SEC Championship games will all air on ESPN. ESPNU will air televise the SEC Tournament semifinals and the SWAC Championship game.
- Home of the Post Season: ESPN will cover the Regionals, Super Regionals and every game of the Women’s College World Series. The selection show will air on May 15 at 10 p.m. on ESPNU. Details to be announced later in the season.
SEC Network and SEC Network +
- SEC Network begins the television coverage when No. 4 Auburn hosts Georgia State (March 6) and Alabama hosts Stamford (March 8). SEC Network will televise a quadrupleheader March 12 and a tripleheader on March 13 featuring No. 16 Kentucky at South Carolina, No. 2 Alabama at No. 6 LSU and No. 1 Florida at No. 4 Auburn both days and Arkansas at No. 20 Tennessee on March 13 as conference play ramps up. Throughout the season SEC Network will air more than 50 games, concluding with the second round of the SEC Tournament on May 13.
- SEC Network +, the digital home of the SEC Network, will stream more than 250 games this season featuring all 13 teams in the conference, including more than 20 appearances by No. 1 Florida.
SEC Network’s full schedule can be found here and SEC Network’s + schedule can be seen here and is continuously updated at SECNetwork.com
ESPN3
ESPN3, which began its 250+ game slate in February, will stream contests from 12 difference conferences — ACC, Atlantic Sun, Big East, Big South, Big West, Horizon League, Ivy, Metro Atlantic, Missouri Valley, Southland, Sun Belt, and Western Athletic. Highlights:
- ACC Softball: More than 50 ACC games including the quarterfinals and semifinals of the conference tournament.
- 12 Florida State, whose series with No. 3 Michigan was streamed in February, will be seen more than 10 times this season, including vs. No. 1 Florida (May 4) and vs. conference opponents No. 25 Notre Dame (April 2-3) and Louisville (May 7-8)
- 25 Notre Dame will also be streamed more than 10 times this season, including the aforementioned series vs. No. 12 Florida State and home series vs. Louisville (April 30 – May 1)
- Sun Belt’s Ragin’ Cajuns: 5 Louisiana-Lafayette will be carried eight times this season
- Conference Highlights:
- Atlantic Sun: More than 25 games from Jacksonville, Kennesaw State, Lipscomb, Stetson, USC Upstate
- Big East: More than 10 games from St. John’s
- Big South: More than 25 games, most originating from Liberty
- Horizon League: More than 50 games
- Metro Atlantic: Select Monmouth home games
- Southland: No. 6 LSU at Southeastern Louisiana (April 13) and the conference championship game
- Conference Championships: The Atlantic Sun, Big South, Horizon League, Missouri Valley, Southern, Southland and Sun Belt Conference Championship games will all be carried on ESPN3. The network will also have early round coverage of the Big South, Horizon League, Sun Belt and the aforementioned ACC, tournaments.
Please note: Not all ESPN3 games are exclusive. Schedules are continuously updated at ESPN3.com
Longhorn Network
Longhorn Network is the home of No. 24 Texas softball, airing 33 Texas home games this season. Non-conference play vs. in-state rivals (UTSA, North Texas, and Texas State) will be televised in March before Longhorn Network airs 10 games vs. Big 12 opponents (t-No. 22 Baylor, Kansas, Oklahoma State and Texas Tech) in April and May. The complete Longhorn Network schedule and additional highlights can be found here.
Television Commentators
ESPN/SEC Network softball analysts are accomplished former college, Olympic and professional softball players:
- Amanda Scarborough
- College: Texas A&M
- Honors: Two-time All-American (2005, ’07). Only player in Big 12 history to receive Freshman of the Year and Player of Year in same season (2005), played in two WCWS (2007, ’08)
- Michele Smith
- College: Oklahoma State
- Honors: Two time All-American, two time Olympic Gold Medalist (1996, ’00) and eight time Japan Pro League MVP
- Leah Amico
- College: Arizona
- Honors: Won three national championships (1993, ’94, ’97), member of goal medal-winning teams at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, 2000 Sydney Olympics and 2004 Athens Olympics
- Kayla Braud
- College: Alabama
- Honors: Three-time All-American and WCWS Champion with the Crimson Tide
- Carol Bruggeman
- College: Iowa
- Honors: As a Division I coach at Michigan, Purdue, and Louisville, achieved more than 700 combined wins; All Big-Ten and All-Mideast Region as a player, inducted into the Iowa Softball Association Hall of Fame (1997
- Jenny Dalton-Hill
- College: Arizona
- Honors: National Player of the Year (1996) and Women’s College World Series MVP (’96) Four-time National Champion, winning three as a player (1993, ’94, and ’96) and one as an assistant coach, also with Arizona (1997)
- Danielle Lawrie
- College: Washington
- Honors: National Champion (2009), All-American, and played for Canadian National Team at the 2008 Beijing Olympics
- Cheri Kempf
- College: Missouri Western State
- Honors: National Champion , National MVP and played on USA National Team that won the World Cup (1992)
- Leigh Ross
- College: Toledo
- Honors: Led the Rockets to the WCWS; holds the MAC record for batting average and hits. Former head coach at Bowling Green and Syracuse
Adam Amin, Trey Bender, Cara Capuano, Tiffany Greene, Jenn Hildreth, Melissa Lee, Beth Mowins, Mark Neely and Pam Ward will call play-by-play throughout the season. Laura Rutledge will be a reporter on a number of telecasts.
ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU Softball Schedule
| Date | Time (ET) | Game | Network |
| March 18 | 7 p.m. | No. 20 Tennessee at No. 1 Florida | ESPNU |
| March 24 | 5 p.m. | Mississippi Valley State at Texas Southern | ESPNU |
| March 26 | Noon | No. 1 Florida at No. 6 LSU | ESPN2 |
| 9 p.m. | No. 24 Texas at t-No. 22 Baylor | ESPN2 | |
| April 2 | Noon | No. 2 Alabama at No. 1 Florida | ESPNU |
| 10:30 p.m. | No. 15 UCLA at No. 8 Oregon | ESPNU | |
| April 3 | 7 p.m. | Ole Miss at Mississippi State | ESPNU |
| April 8 | 7 p.m. | Coastal Carolina at Winthrop | ESPNU |
| April 9 | Noon | No. 9 Texas A&M at No. 20 Tennessee | ESPNU |
| 5:30 p.m. | NC State at No. 12 Florida State | ESPNU | |
| 6 p.m. | No. 16 Kentucky at No. 6 LSU | ESPN2 | |
| 7:30 p.m. | No. 11 Georgia at No. 14 Missouri | ESPNU | |
| April 10 | 3 p.m. | No. 13 Oklahoma at t-No. 22 Baylor | ESPN2 |
| 4 p.m. | NC State at No. 12 Florida State | ESPNU | |
| April 16 | 1 p.m. | No. 20 Tennessee at No. 11 Georgia | ESPN2 |
| 3 p.m. | No. 24 Texas at No. 13 Oklahoma | ESPN2 | |
| April 23 | 2 p.m. | No. 11 Georgia at No. 4 Auburn | ESPNU |
| 4:30 p.m. | No. 13 Oklahoma at No. 20 Tennessee | ESPNU | |
| 5 p.m. | No. 15 UCLA at No. 18 Arizona | ESPN2 | |
| April 24 | 3:30 p.m. | No. 25 Notre Dame at North Carolina | ESPNU |
| 5 p.m. | No. 15 UCLA at No. 18 Arizona | ESPN2 | |
| April 25 | 7 p.m. | No. 25 Notre Dame at North Carolina | ESPNU |
| April 27 | 6 p.m. | Long Beach State at Cal State Fullerton | ESPNU |
| 10:30 p.m. | Long Beach State at Cal State Fullerton | ESPNU* | |
| April 28 | 4 p.m. | Bethune-Cookman at Florida A&M | ESPNU |
| April 30 | 7 p.m. | No. 6 LSU at Arkansas | ESPNU |
| 8 p.m. | No. 4 Auburn at No. 20 Tennessee | ESPN2 | |
| May 1 | 3 p.m. | No. 18 Arizona at No. 8 Oregon | ESPN2 |
| 5 p.m. | UCF at USF | ESPNU | |
| 7 p.m. | No. 4 Auburn at No. 20 Tennessee | ESPNU | |
| May 7 | Noon | No. 11 Georgia at No. 2 Alabama | ESPN |
| 1 p.m. | No. 9 Texas A&M at No. 4 Auburn | ESPNU | |
| 3 p.m. | South Carolina at No. 14 Missouri | ESPNU | |
| May 13 | 3 p.m. | SEC Tournament | ESPNU |
| 5:30 p.m. | SEC Tournament | ESPNU | |
| May 14 | Noon | American Championship | ESPN |
| 2 p.m. | ACC Championship | ESPN | |
| 5 p.m. | SEC Championship | ESPN | |
| May 15 | 10 a.m. | SWAC Softball Championship | ESPNU** |
*Live on ESPN3 at 8:30 p.m.
**Live on ESPN3 on May 14 at 3 p.m.
All rankings are per USA Softball (March 1)
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Media contact: Derek Volner at 860-384-9986; Derek.Volner@ESPN.com and @DerekVolner
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