The Sun Belt Conference softball tournament is the conference championship tournament in softball for the Sun Belt Conference. The winner of the tournament receives the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division I softball tournament. The 2026 host of the tournament is the University of Louisiana at Lafayette at Yvette Girouard Field at Lamson Park, the largest softball facility in the conference.
Tournament The Sun Belt Conference softball tournament is an eight team double-elimination tournament held annually at various sites in the Sun Belt Conference region. The bottom four seeds play a one-round single elimination play in game. The four teams with the best conference record at the end of the regular season earn automatic berths in the tournament. After the play-in round, the remaining six teams will play 2 four team double-elimination brackets with a single elimination championship game between the bracket winners. The team with the best conference record will be seeded #1 and will play one of the winners of the first-round game. The team with the second-best conference record will receive the #2 seed and will also play one of the winners of the first-round game. The champion of the competition receives an automatic bid to the NCAA Division I softball tournament.
History The tournament started in 2000 as a four team double-elimination tournament.
In 2001, the tournament expanded to include six teams but still remained double-elimination.
For the 2002 and 2003 edition, the tournament included five teams and remained double-elimination.
From 2004, the tournament went back to a six-team double-elimination format and stayed that way until 2007 when it expanded to eight-teams double-elimination and has stayed that way since.
The Ragin' Cajuns of Louisiana have considerably successful in the tournament, winning all but five times in the entirety of the tournament. Most winners of the tournament finished the season in the national Top-25 polls or received votes, except the 2007 Florida Atlantic team and the 2012 South Alabama team. The highest ranked of those teams was the 2008 Louisiana–Lafayette team to finish No. 6 in the NFCA poll. The lowest of those ranked teams was the 2002 Louisiana–Lafayette team who finished receiving votes.
Champions
By Year
Year School Site Most Outstanding Player(s) 2000 Lafayette, LA Kim Dunlap, Louisiana–Lafayette 2001 Las Cruces, NM Missy Martin, Louisiana–Lafayette 2002 Miami, FL Melissa Coronado, Louisiana–Lafayette 2003 Bowling Green, KY Brooke Mitchell, Louisiana–Lafayette 2004 Lafayette, LA Brooke Mitchell, Louisiana–Lafayette 2005 Bowling Green, KY Heather Bobbitt, Louisiana–Lafayette 2006 Miami, FL Jessica Lemoine, Louisiana–Lafayette 2007 Florida Atlantic Murfreesboro, TN Jen Musillo, Florida Atlantic 2008 Louisiana–Lafayette Troy, AL Ashley Brignac, Louisiana–Lafayette 2009 Louisiana–Lafayette Denton, TX Christi Orgeron, Louisiana–Lafayette 2010 Louisiana–Lafayette Mobile, AL Donna Bourgeois & Gabrielle Bridges, Louisiana–Lafayette 2011 Louisiana–Lafayette Lafayette, LA Christi Orgeron, Louisiana–Lafayette 2012 Boca Raton, FL Hannah Campbell, South Alabama 2013 Troy, AL Hannah Campbell, South Alabama 2014 Louisiana–Lafayette Lafayette, LA Lexie Elkins, Louisiana–Lafayette 2015 San Marcos, TX Kaitlyn Griffith, South Alabama 2016 Louisiana–Lafayette San Marcos, TX Aleah Craighton, Louisiana–Lafayette 2017 Louisiana–Lafayette Troy, AL Alex Stewart, Louisiana–Lafayette 2018 Lafayette, LA Haleigh Davis, Texas State 2019 Louisiana San Marcos, TX Summer Ellyson, Louisiana 2020Cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic 2021 Louisiana Troy, AL Summer Ellyson, Louisiana 2022 Louisiana Mobile, AL Raina O'Neal, Louisiana 2023 Louisiana Lafayette, LA Sam Landry, Louisiana 2024 Texas State San Marcos, TX Sara Vanderford, Texas State 2025 Coastal Carolina Troy, AL Nicolette Picone, Coastal Carolina 2026 South Alabama Lafayette, LA Ryley Harrison, South Alabama
By school As of July 1, 2022, there are 12 schools in the conference that competes in softball, however, only three of the twelve schools have softball championships.
Current members School Tourney Titles Title Years Louisiana/Louisiana–Lafayette 18 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023 South Alabama 4 2012, 2013, 2015, 2026 Coastal Carolina 1 2025
Former members School Tourney Titles Title Years Texas State 2 2018, 2024 Florida Atlantic 1 2007
External links
References