1976 Women's College World Series
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The 1976 Women's College World Series (WCWS) was held in Omaha, Nebraska on May 13–16, with nineteen college softball teams meeting in the 1976 ASA/AIAW fastpitch softball tournament. Most of the teams had won state championships. This was the last WCWS before the adoption of regional qualifying tournaments. Because college softball had not yet been separated into competitive divisions, large and small colleges competed together in one overall national championship.[1]
The Michigan State Spartans went undefeated through all five of their games to win the 1976 national championship, beating Northern Colorado, 3–0, in the final game. Carol Hutchins played shortstop for that 1976 team and would coach the rival Michigan Wolverines to the WCWS title 29 years later in 2005.
The double-elimination tournament included the following teams:
| Team | Appearance |
|---|---|
| Arizona State | 4th |
| Cal State–Sacramento | 1st |
| East Stroudsburg State (PA) | 2nd |
| Illinois State | 6th |
| Indiana State | 2nd |
| Kansas | 4th |
| Mayville State (ND) | 1st |
| Michigan State | 4th |
| Minnesota | 1st |
| Nebraska–Omaha | 7th |
| Northern Colorado | 8th |
| Northern Iowa | 3rd |
| Northern State (SD) | 2nd |
| Northwestern Oklahoma State | 1st |
| Oregon | 1st |
| South Carolina | 4th |
| Tarkio College (MO) | 1st |
| Texas–Arlington | 1st |
| Utah | 1st |