UCLA earned top billing for the first time since 2014 and ended UW’s nine-week reign atop the poll.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – UCLA swept Pac-12 rival and then-No. 1 Washington over the weekend to overtake the Huskies (41-5) for the No. 1 ranking in this week’s USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Coaches Poll. The Bruins (40-3), who received 29 first-place votes and 797 points, earned top billing for the first time since 2014 and ended UW’s nine-week reign atop the poll.
.@UCLASoftball @_aaliyahjordan finished the weekend batting .333 and slugging 1.000 as the Bruins swept No. 1 Washington.#Pac12SB Player AND Freshman of the week: https://t.co/Wa1xoKpcOh pic.twitter.com/P9ehfe1Lzi
— Pac-12 Network (@Pac12Network) April 23, 2018
UCLA earned three hard-fought wins over Washington (3-0, 3-2, 1-0) to jump into first-place in the Pac-12 as well. The last time the Bruins were No. 1 in the NFCA poll was on April 1, 2014. They held the spot for two weeks.
Oregon jumped into the No. 2 hole after a 4-0 week, which included a big non-conference win over then-No. 2 Oklahoma (5-0) at The Jane. The Ducks (38-7) also swept a home Pac-12 series from Stanford (8-4, 4-1, 4-1).
The Sooners (41-3) bounced back from their defeat in Eugene, by taking two road wins over RV Oregon State (4-0, 8-0). They also edged Tulsa (1-0) on the road to start the week.
#Sooners finish the weekend with their second straight shutout to sweep the series against the Beavers. @fale_aviu and @caleigh_20 recap the win pic.twitter.com/txvv1W4IKs
— Oklahoma Softball (@OU_Softball) April 22, 2018
The Huskies dipped to No. 4 following the sweep, while Florida remained at No. 5. The Gators (41-7) knocked off Florida A&M (19-3) and went on the road to sweep then-No. 19 Mississippi State (8-3, 6-2, 3-0).
Georgia and Tennessee come in tied at No. 6. The Bulldogs (40-7) were 3-1 with two victories over No. 20 Kentucky, while the Lady Vols (40-8) posted a 3-0 mark, defeating then-No. 17 Alabama twice in Tuscaloosa.
#RingTheBell
— Georgia Softball (@UGASoftball) April 22, 2018
That’s the COMEBACK WIN!!
Sixth @SEC series win
40th win of the season#ItTakesWhatItTakes | #GoDawgs pic.twitter.com/kwrCCCkuqL
Florida State leaped two spots to No. 8. The Seminoles (38-8) blanked Louisville in the first two games of its ACC series. Arizona State slipped to No. 9 and Arizona moved to No. 10 after the Wildcats (31-13) took two-out-of-three from the Sun Devils (35-9) in Tempe.
The 2018 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 April 22.