LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Unbeaten Alabama (10-0) continues its reign at the top of the USA Today/NFCA Division I softball rankings for a second consecutive week during the regular season after registering a 5-0 mark at the Florida Gulf Coast/LaQuinta Inn & Suites Tournament in Fort Myers, Fla.
The Crimson Tide reaped 20 of 31 possible first-place votes, but again saw No. 2 Oklahoma (10-0) trim into its advantage, cutting this week’s deficit from nine to just seven points after receiving 11 first-place nods. The Sooners posted a perfect 5-0 mark at the Campbell Cartier Classic in San Diego, Calif., including victories over ranked foes then-No. 24 Kentucky (11-0, 5 inn.) and then-No. 18 Washington (2-0).
The remainder of the top five remained unchanged from the previous poll as Arizona State (12-0, unbeaten at the Littlewood Classic in Tempe, Ariz.), Tennessee (10-0, unbeaten at the USF Four-Team Tournament in Tampa, Fla.) and Florida (12-0, unbeaten at the Florida Lipton Invitational in Gainesville, Fla.) maintain positions No. 3 through No. 5, respectively.
Texas (11-0) held steady in the sixth spot after a strong weekend at the Hilton Houston Plaza Invitational in Houston, Texas, while Missouri (5-0, unbeaten at the UCSB Tournament in Santa Barbara, Calif.) and California (7-2, unbeaten at the Easton Desert Classic in Las Vegas, Nev.) each climbed one spot to seventh and eighth, respectively. Oregon suffered a 6-5 defeat to then-No. 20 Hawai’i at the Easton Desert Classic and, as a result, dropped two spots from seventh to ninth in this week’s poll. Texas A&M parlayed an undefeated weekend at its home-hosted Aggie Classic into a one position jump from No. 11 to No. 10 in the latest ratings.
The USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Poll is voted on by 31 NCAA Division I head coaches, one representing each conference. Current 2013 records are shown while first-place votes are in parentheses.
For the complete poll, please visit this link.
