The Mid-American Conference softball tournament is the conference softball championship of the Mid-American Conference, a Division I member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The top four finishers participate in the double-elimination tournament, which is held at the home field of the regular-season champion. The winner of the tournament receives an automatic berth to the NCAA Division I softball championship.
The tournament began in 1982, but was discontinued after 1986. It resumed in 1996 and was held annually through 2019. It was scheduled to be played in May 2020, but was cancelled in March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. As part of several changes announced in May 2020 related to the pandemic, the tournament was eliminated along with the post-season tournaments of seven other sports, for at least four seasons. This was later reversed in May 2021, when the conference announced all previously canceled tournaments would be returning for the 2021–22 season. The softball tournament resumed in 2022 with a new format, reducing the number of participating teams to the top four from the regular season, with the tournament hosted by the top seed. Beginning in 2024, the tournament will return to being hosted at a neutral location. Central Michigan have won the most tournament titles with 10, followed by Miami with 8.
History The Mid-American Conference added softball as a varsity sport for the 1982 season, but regular-season conference play did not begin until 1983. The first tournament in 1982 featured all ten conference members, with two rounds of single-elimination play, followed by double-elimination rounds with the final four teams. The following year, 1983, it became a double-elimination tournament featuring the top six teams in conference play, then was reduced to the top four teams for the 1984, 1985, and 1986 tournaments. This format remained in place when the tournament was resumed in 1996 and again in 1997. From 1998 through 2004, the format was expanded to include the top six teams in conference play, and since 2005 it has included the top eight teams.
From the 1983 tournament through 2001, all rounds were held at the home field of the regular-season overall conference champion, with the inaugural 1982 tournament being held at Ebert Field on the campus of Western Michigan University. Beginning in 2002, the tournament was held at Firestone Stadium in Akron, Ohio, where it was held through 2005. After two seasons at Currie Stadium in Midland, Michigan, the tournament returned to Firestone Stadium in 2008, where it remained until the tournament was eliminated. When the tournament resumed in 2022, it was again held at the site of the regular-season champion for 2022 and 2023 before returning to Firestone Stadium in 2024.
Champions
By year The following is a list of tournament champions and sites listed by year. Year Team champion Site Most Valuable Player 1982 Central Michigan Ebert Field • Kalamazoo, Michigan — 1983 Central Michigan Varsity Field • Ypsilanti, Michigan — 1984 Western Michigan Ebert Field • Kalamazoo, Michigan — 1985 Central Michigan Scott Park Softball Complex • Toledo, Ohio — 1986 Central Michigan — No tournament held, 1987–1995 1996 No champion Buchtel Field • Akron, Ohio — 1997 Central Michigan Margo Jonker Stadium • Mount Pleasant, Michigan Amy Daugherty (Western Michigan) 1998 Ball State Buchtel Field • Akron, Ohio Heather Hinkle (Ball State) 1999 Central Michigan Bell Field • DeKalb, Illinois Tina Kinney (Central Michigan) 2000 Central Michigan Hope Robertson (Central Michigan) 2001 Central Michigan Margo Jonker Stadium • Mount Pleasant, Michigan Hope Robertson (Central Michigan) 2002 Central Michigan Firestone Stadium • Akron, Ohio Amber Puchalski (Central Michigan)Karly McCormack (Central Michigan) 2003 Western Michigan Jackie Poggendorf (Miami) 2004 Bowling Green Jody Johnson (Bowling Green) 2005 Miami Jackie Poggendorf (Miami) 2006 Kent State Currie Stadium • Midland, Michigan Brittany Robinson (Kent State) 2007 Eastern Michigan Lindsay Schmid (Eastern Michigan) 2008 Kent State Firestone Stadium • Akron, Ohio Jamie Fitzpatrick (Kent State) 2009 Miami Jessica Simpson (Miami) 2010 Ball State Elizabeth Milian (Ball State) 2011 Western Michigan Meredith Whitney (Western Michigan) 2012 Miami Jessica Simpson (Miami) 2013 Central Michigan Kara Dornbos (Central Michigan) 2014 Ohio Savannah Jo Dorsey (Ohio) 2015 Ball State Hanne Stuedemann (Ball State) 2016 Miami Amber Logemann (Miami) 2017 Kent State Ronnie Ladines (Kent State) 2018 Ohio Danielle Stiene (Ohio) 2019 Toledo Erin Hunt (Toledo) 2020 Cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemicNo tournament held in 2021 2022 Miami Miami Softball Stadium • Oxford, Ohio Brianna Pratt (Miami) 2023 Miami Karli Spaid (Miami) 2024 Miami Firestone Stadium • Akron, Ohio Karli Spaid (Miami) 2025 Miami Chloe Parks (Miami) 2026 Akron Madie Jamrog (Akron)
By school The following is a list of tournament champions listed by school and the years each team was eligible to play in the tournament. Program Tenure Titles Title years Central Michigan 1982–19861996–20202022–present 10 1982, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2013 Miami 1982–19861996–20202022–present 8 2005, 2009, 2012, 2016, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025 Ball State 1982–19861996–20202022–present 3 1998, 2010, 2015 Kent State 1982–19861996–20202022–present 3 2006, 2008, 2017 Western Michigan 1982–19861996–20202022–present 3 1984, 2003, 2011 Ohio 1982–19861996–20202022–present 2 2014, 2018 Akron 1996–20202022–present 1 2026 Bowling Green 1982–19861996–20202022–present 1 2004 Toledo 1982–19861996–20202022–present 1 2019 Northern Illinois 1982–19861998–20202022–present 0 Buffalo 2001–20202022–present 0 Eastern Michigan 1982–19861996–2018 1 2007 Marshall 1996–2005 0 Former conference members shaded in ██ silver
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