LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Outscoring its opponents 38-1, including an 8-0 victory over No. 2 Michigan, has Florida atop the first regular season USA Today/NFCA Division I Coaches Poll. The Gators (4-0) dominant weekend had them receive 31 of a possible 32 first-place votes and 799 points.
Taking part in the USF Wilson-DeMarini Tournament, UF run-ruled all four opponents and posted three shutouts. In a rematch of last year’s WCWS National Championship series, the Gators scored three runs in the bottom of the first and cruised the victory over the second-ranked Wolverines, 8-0. Florida also defeated Illinois State (11-0), Virginia Tech (8-0) and hosts USF (11-1).
Despite the setback to Florida, Michigan (4-1) recorded three run-rule victories over South Carolina (15-3), Illinois State (12-0) and USF (11-2) before closing out the weekend with a 3-1 win over the Hokies.
Moving up a spot to No. 3 is Auburn after an offensive show at Jane B. Moore Field over the weekend. The Tigers outscored their opponents 86-10, which included a school-record 28-2 victory over Butler and a 22-5 triumph against Appalachian State.
LSU fell to No. 4 following a 4-1 showing at its Tiger Classic. The Tigers triumphed over Ohio State (9-0), North Florida (9-0), Connecticut (13-2) and Pacific (10-1), but was upset on Saturday by the Pacific (2-1).
Alabama remained at No. 5 going 4-1 at the UCF Knights Invitational. The Crimson Tide picked up a walk-off win over No. 19 James Madison, 2-1 and also toppled Fordham (9-1), Rutgers (6-0) and Liberty (10-2). Their lone defeat was a 8-1 setback to the then-No. 17 Knights.
Oregon (5-1) stayed put at the No. 6 spot, while UCLA (4-1) dropped one notch to No. 8. New to the top 10 this week are undefeated squads Louisiana-Lafayette (4-0), Arizona (6-0) and Georgia (4-0) coming in at No. 7, 9 and 10, respectively. The Ragin’ Cajuns and Wildcats moved up four spots each, while the Bulldogs jumped two spots.
Making the biggest moves were No. 11 Washington and No. 24 Fresno State. The Huskies (4-0) knocked off then-No. 9 Oklahoma (10-3) and then-No. 14 Minnesota (7-2) on their way to an undefeated opening weekend. An undefeated start, which included a 7-3 win over then-No. 8 Tennessee helped the Bulldogs (5-0) catapult into the Top 25 after receiving three points in the preseason poll.
Joining Fresno State as a newcomer to the poll is No. 25 Texas A&M (4-1). Dropping out this week are then-No. 23 North Carolina State (3-2) and then-No. 24 Notre Dame (3-2).
The USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Poll is voted on by 32 NCAA Division I head coaches, one representing each conference. Records reflect games played through Feb. 14, 2016.
2016 USA Today/NFCA Division I Softball Coaches Poll
Week 1 | Feb. 16, 2016 (Results through 2/14)
| Rank | Team | Points | 2015 Record | Last Poll |
| 1 | Florida (31) | 799 | 4-0 | 1 |
| 2 | Michigan | 746 | 4-1 | 2 |
| 3 | Auburn (1) | 733 | 5-0 | 4 |
| 4 | LSU | 675 | 4-1 | 3 |
| 5 | Alabama | 662 | 4-1 | 5 |
| 6 | Oregon | 643 | 5-1 | 6 |
| 7 | Louisiana Lafayette | 563 | 5-0 | 11 |
| 8 | UCLA | 555 | 4-1 | 7 |
| 9 | Arizona | 479 | 6-0 | 13 |
| 10 | Georgia | 472 | 4-0 | 12 |
| 11 | Washington | 463 | 4-0 | 20 |
| 12 | Tennessee | 430 | 4-2 | 8 |
| 13 | Florida State | 411 | 4-1 | 10 |
| 14 | Oklahoma | 406 | 3-2 | 9 |
| 15 | UCF | 351 | 4-1 | 17 |
| 16 | Missouri | 302 | 0-0 | 15 |
| 17 | Arizona State | 291 | 6-0 | 22 |
| 18 | Kentucky | 266 | 3-1 | 18 |
| 19 | James Madison | 259 | 4-1 | 19 |
| 20 | Minnesota | 243 | 3-2 | 20 |
| 21 | Baylor | 143 | 2-1 | 16 |
| 22 | California | 121 | 3-1 | 21 |
| 23 | South Alabama | 101 | 5-0 | 25 |
| 24 | Fresno State | 83 | 5-0 | RV |
| 25 | Texas A&M | 76 | 4-1 | RV |
Dropped Out: No. 23 North Carolina State, No. 24, Notre Dame
Receiving Votes: Texas (48), Notre Dame (33), Nebraska (13), Florida Atlantic (13), Mississippi State (10), North Carolina State (4), Long Beach State (3), North Dakota State (1), North Carolina (1), Oregon State (1).
The USA Today/NFCA Division I Softball Coaches Poll is voted on by 32 NCAA Division I head coaches, one representing each conference.
