In the past 12 seasons (1995-2006), the Michigan softball team has put together a string of success that has thwarted them into the national spotlight. Having finished no worse than second in the league over the span, the Wolverines have won eight conference championships and eight Big Ten Tournament titles over the span and earned a spot in the NCAA Championships each year. In 2005, Michigan's success culminated in the Big Ten's first-ever national softball championship.

Over the course of the 12-year era, 21 Michigan players were awarded a total of 42 spots on the All-Big Ten first team as legendary coach Carol Hutchins earned Coach of the Year honors six times. Seven Wolverines have been named Pitcher of the Year by the conference, and five have combined to earn seven Player of the Year awards, including a pair of two-time honorees in Sara Griffin (1995-96) and Traci Conrad (1998-99). As a testament to Hutchins' recruiting, six newcomers have been named the Big Ten's Freshman of the Year since 1995.

A dynamic combination of pitching and hitting has allowed Michigan to remain at the top. Three times the Wolverines have had an individual conference batting champion, and four times have had a Big Ten leader in home runs, runs batted in or both. Traci Conrad twice had the highest batting average (1998-99) while Stefanie Volpe took the RBI crown three times (1999-01-02) and holds the conference record for RBIs in a single season with 33. On the mound, Michigan pitchers led the league in earned run average for four-consecutive years from 1996-99, including two top-performances from Sara Griffin, who in 1998 posted a perfect 17-0 Big Ten season.

During their national championship run in 2005, the Wolverines lost just seven games on the year and posted a .903 winning percentage. Jennie Ritter, who is tops on the Big Ten career strikeout and victories lists, earned Pitcher of the Year honors while Samantha Findlay, who would hit the game-winning homer in the NCAA Championship game, was the Big Ten Freshman of the Year.