Oklahoma No. 1, Texas No. 2 in Latest USA Softball Top 25
The Oklahoma Sooners (9-0) went to Lake Charles (La.) and handled business in Week 2, holding their opponents to one run over five games. With an NCAA-record 62-game winning streak still intact, Patty Gasso’s squad is still the No. 1 team in this week’s USA Softball Top 25 Poll and will remain there until someone knocks them from their perch.
That team could be Texas (7-0), and while the Longhorns and Sooners don’t face off until early April, UT has looked as impressive as anyone in the country. After impressive wins over Tennessee and Stanford last Friday, Texas moved to the No. 2 spot in this week’s poll. The Longhorns rank fifth nationally with a .415 team batting average, third nationally with a .500 on-base percentage, and second with 10.71 runs per game through two weeks.
Despite going 2-2 in their last four games, Oklahoma State (7-2) remained at No. 8 in this week’s poll and is fresh off a 3-0 win over Florida (in Gainesville) on Monday night. The Pokes have a big game against No. 4 Washington on Thursday, but the other nine of their 10 upcoming games should easily be wins, giving them a good chance to get to a March 6 matchup against Wichita State with 15+ wins.
Baylor (3-3) stayed put at No. 22 in the poll after a 3-1 weekend, which included two wins over then-No. 23 Louisiana and one victory over McNeese State (RV). The Bears have played an incredibly difficult schedule to this point, with every team they’ve faced being ranked outside of McNeese, who is receiving votes. The difficult stretch will continue this week as BU will face No. 25 Oregon, No. 19 UCLA, and No . 13 Missouri, among other teams, at the Mary Nutter Classic.
Two Big 12 teams were among the teams receiving votes this week as well, with Texas Tech (7-3) receiving eight points and UCF (7-2) receiving two points.
ESPN.com/USA Softball Top 25 Poll – Week 2 (Feb. 20, 2023)
| RANK | COLLEGE | RECORD | POINTS | PREVIOUS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oklahoma (21) | 9-0 | 621 | 1 |
| 2 | Texas | 7-0 | 604 | 3 |
| 3 | Georgia | 9-0 | 569 | 4 |
| 4 | Washington | 6-1 | 538 | 6 |
| 5 | Tennessee | 4-2 | 506 | 2 |
| 6 | Duke | 8-1 | 462 | 10 |
| 7 | LSU | 8-0 | 445 | 12 |
| 8 | Oklahoma State | 6-2 | 423 | 8 |
| 9 | Clemson | 6-2 | 407 | 7 |
| 10 | Alabama | 10-0 | 395 | 11 |
| 11 | Florida State | 5-3 | 372 | 5 |
| 12 | Stanford | 5-4 | 365 | 9 |
| 13 | Missouri | 10-0 | 342 | 15 |
| 14 | Arkansas | 8-2 | 271 | 13 |
| 15 | Kentucky | 6-2 | 253 | 18 |
| 16 | Florida | 8-1 | 239 | 19 |
| 17 | Texas A&M | 9-0 | 209 | 25 |
| 18 | South Carolina | 8-1 | 155 | 21 |
| 19 | UCLA | 3-4 | 122 | 20 |
| 20 | Mississippi State | 8-1 | 116 | – |
| 21 | Virginia Tech | 7-2-1 | 111 | 17 |
| 22 | Baylor | 3-3 | 110 | 22 |
| 23 | Arizona | 10-1 | 108 | RV |
| 24 | Auburn | 4-1-1 | 92 | 24 |
| 25 | Oregon | 6-5 | 69 | 14 |
Dropped out: Louisiana, Utah
Others receiving votes: California (62), Utah (61), Louisiana (28), Northwestern (27), Indiana (11), San Diego State (10), Texas Tech (8), Boston U (7), McNeese (5), Louisville (4), Florida Atlantic (2), Miami-OH (2), UCF (2), Boise State (1), Grand Canyon (1)
