South Florida earns its fourth consecutive NCAA appearance and 16th under head coach Ken Eriksen
TAMPA, Fla., May 15, 2022 – The University of South Florida softball team earned its eighth NCAA tournament appearance in the last ten years with tournaments as the NCAA announced the Bulls earned the third seed in the Tallahassee regional.
The Bulls (44-14) will battle two-seed Mississippi State (33-24) in the first game at 6 p.m. on ESPNU. The Tallahassee regional also features Howard (31-22) and Florida State (52-5), who will play at 8:30 p.m.
South Florida, who is led by four-time AAC Pitcher of the Year Georgina Corrick (Sanford, Fla.) and two-time all-conference selection Alexis Johns (Sarasota, Fla.), enter tournament play with a 44-14 record, the most wins it has had in a single-season since 2016. The Bulls are coming off an appearance in the championship game of the AAC tournament, their third trip to the title game since the league’s inception.
Corrick, who was recently named a top 10 finalist for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award, was selected third in the Athletes Unlimited Softball College Draft and was named the AAC Pitcher of the Year for the fourth consecutive season, currently holds a 36-5 record with a 0.53 ERA and 407 strikeouts in 266.1 innings pitched. She’s tossed two perfect games and a no-hitter this season, tallied 20 shutouts and ranks first in the NCAA in four categories (innings pitched, shutouts, strikeouts, victories). The Great Britain national team member has also broken 18 different records in her time with the Bulls.
A first-team all-conference selection, Johns has stolen the 19th most bases in NCAA history this season with 58 swipes to date. She leads the country in the category as well, with the next closest player seven steals behind.
The Bulls have now reached the NCAA tournament 17 times since the team’s first appearance in 1996. Overall, the Bulls have a 29-33 record in the tourney, including a 28-31 mark under head coach Ken Eriksen. This is the Bulls’ sixth trip to Tallahassee for regional play and the Bulls have an 8-10 record in regionals played at the site.
USF leads the all-time series against the Bulldogs, 3-2. The last meeting between the two teams was in 2012, a 1-0 win for USF.
The Bulls have played 11 teams in this year’s tournament field, posting a combined 11-10 record. USF has earned wins over No. 7 Oklahoma State, Michigan, Notre Dame, Lehigh, Wichita State, Wisconsin, Canisius and Ohio State.
The winner of the double-elimination regional will advance to the best-of-three super regionals, where they will play the winner of the Missouri regional, played from May 26-29. The Women’s College World Series is played in Oklahoma City, Okla. from June 2-9.
About USF Softball
Be sure to follow USF softball on social media (Twitter / Facebook / Instagram) and visit GoUSFBulls.com for the most up-to-date information. The USF softball program has been one of the most successful on campus, making 17 NCAA tournament appearances, including a trip to the Women’s College World Series in 2012.
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