LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Unanimous No. 1 UCLA extended its winning streak to 16 games as the Bruins (32-1) enter their fourth week atop the 2019 USA Today / NFCA Top 25 Coaches Poll. Arizona returns to the top-10 for the first time since February 18, while No. 16 and No. 18 Ole Miss picked up big conference series wins over top-10 programs to make significant moves into the top-20.
UCLA enjoyed a 5-0 week at home. The Bruins opened the week with a pair of triumphs over UC Santa Barbara and Cal State Fullerton before taking all three matchups from the Bears, including two one-run victories.
NCAA SOFTBALL NEWS: Stats | Rankings | Scores
The ninth-ranked Wildcats (27-7) put in a dominant performance over the weekend blanking then-No. 17 Arizona State in a three-game Pac-12 sweep. The Wildcat pitching duo of Taylor McQuillin and Alyssa Denham held the NCAA’s top scoring (9.12), home run hitting (64) and slugging (.696) team scoreless and surrendered just six hits over 17 innings.
The No. 16 Cowgirls (26-10) and No. 18 Rebels (24-9) each took two-of-three from then No. 9 Texas and then-No. 6 Florida, respectively. Oklahoma State catapulted five spots after it blanked the Longhorns (31-8) in the first two games (1-0, 8-0) before falling in game three, 4-3.
Ole Miss, which moved up four positions, bounced back from a 15-inning game one defeat to knock off the Gators (29-8) 8-4 in eight innings on an Abbey Latham walk-off grand slam and 3-1 in the series finale.
No. 2 Oklahoma and No. 3 Florida State posted 3-0 marks, while No. 4 Alabama and No. 5 Tennessee both suffered one defeat in Southeastern Conference play. The Sooners (32-2) captured three non-conference wins, upping their winning streak to 22 games, and the Seminoles (35-3) swept Virginia in Charlottesville.
Unanimous No. 1 @UCLASoftball extends winning streak to 16; @ArizonaSoftball joins top-10 in @USATODAY / NFCA DI Top 25 Coaches Poll #NFCAD1Poll https://t.co/HZZe4GY6IN pic.twitter.com/I2UIs2wJgU
— NFCA (@NFCAorg) April 2, 2019
The Crimson Tide (36-2) topped Georgia Tech and took two-of-three from Mississippi State, while the Lady Vols (27-6) split an SEC doubleheader with RV Missouri on Sunday.
Washington and LSU each moved up one spot each to No. 6 and 7, respectively. The Huskies (29-6) swept Oregon State at home, shutting out the Beavers in games two and three. The Tigers (31-7) took two-of-three from then-No. 16 South Carolina and defeated Nicholls State in mid-week action.
No. 10 Louisiana (29-4) holds steady at No. 10 following a three-game Sun Belt road sweep of Georgia Southern.
| Rank | School | Points | Record | Previous |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | UCLA (32) | 800 | 32-1 | 1 |
| 2 | Oklahoma | 763 | 32-2 | 2 |
| 3 | Florida State | 737 | 35-3 | 3 |
| 4 | Alabama | 693 | 36-2 | 4 |
| 5 | Tennessee | 660 | 27-6 | 5 |
| 6 | Washington | 650 | 29-6 | 7 |
| 7 | LSU | 575 | 31-7 | 8 |
| 8 | Florida | 565 | 29-8 | 6 |
| 9 | Arizona | 544 | 27-7 | 11 |
| 10 | Louisiana | 532 | 29-4 | 10 |
| 11 | Texas | 469 | 31-8 | 9 |
| 12 | Georgia | 416 | 28-10 | 12 |
| 13 | Auburn | 349 | 30-7 | 14 |
| 14 | Arkansas | 330 | 25-11 | 13 |
| 15 | Texas Tech | 321 | 29-6 | 15 |
| 16 | Oklahoma State | 282 | 26-10 | 21 |
| 17 | South Carolina | 276 | 25-10 | 16 |
| 18 | Ole Miss | 254 | 24-9 | 22 |
| 19 | Minnesota | 250 | 25-9 | 19 |
| 20 | James Madison | 216 | 23-6 | 20 |
| 21 | Arizona State | 174 | 25-11 | 17 |
| 22 | Kentucky | 152 | 22-13 | 18 |
| 23 | Michigan | 99 | 23-10 | 23 |
| 24 | Virginia Tech | 84 | 30-5 | 24 |
| 25 | Wisconsin | 76 | 27-5 | 25 |
