For Immediate Release: 3/16/10
Washington remains No. 1 for fifth-straight week
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — The University of Washington (22-1) remains at No. 1 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 poll for the fifth consecutive week after taking home the title of the Husky Softball Classic this weekend with five wins announced today by the Amateur Softball Association (ASA) of America. The defending National Champions received all but one first-place vote as the Arizona Wildcats, also 22-1, claimed one first-place vote after a perfect six-win weekend for a No. 2 ranking.
No. 4 Michigan moved up one spot with four victories, two of which were against a then-No. 20 Louisville. The Crimson Tide of Alabama landed at No. 5 this week from No. 7 with two strong wins over SEC opponent Georgia. The Bulldogs are now tied at No. 6 with the UCLA Bruins who defeated a then-No.18 North Carolina 1-0.
The top ten teams remained the same as the Pac-10 Conference leads the way with seven teams in the Top 25. The Big 12 is close behind with six teams and the SEC with five teams.
North Carolina advanced despite the UCLA loss from No. 18 to 16 with two ACC wins over Florida State. The Cowgirls of Oklahoma State continued to climb as they are now tied at No. 17 with Ohio State. No. 21 Tennessee and No. 22 Illinois both saw the week’s biggest jumps moving up three spots.
BYU dropped out of the poll with three losses while the Oregon Ducks claimed No. 25 with four wins.
ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25
March 16 – Week of March 8-14
| Rank | Team | Record | Points | Last Week Ranking |
| 1. | Washington (24) | 22-1 | 499 | 1 |
| 2. | Arizona (1) | 22-1 | 480 | 2 |
| 3. | Missouri | 16-2 | 460 | 3 |
| 4. | Michigan | 18-4 | 439 | 5 |
| 5. | Alabama | 17-6 | 393 | 7 |
| T6. | Georgia | 19-3 | 378 | 4 |
| T6. | UCLA | 17-4 | 378 | 6 |
| 8. | Oklahoma | 21-3 | 374 | 9 |
| 9. | Georgia Tech | 22-3 | 341 | 8 |
| 10. | Arizona State | 24-2 | 339 | 10 |
| 11. | Stanford | 15-3 | 287 | 12 |
| 12. | California | 19-4 | 267 | 13 |
| 13. | Florida | 18-3 | 263 | 11 |
| 14. | LSU | 21-4 | 243 | 15 |
| 15. | Texas | 20-3 | 225 | 14 |
| 16. | North Carolina | 18-5 | 186 | 18 |
| T17. | Ohio State | 13-6 | 164 | 17 |
| T17. | Oklahoma State | 20-6 | 164 | 19 |
| 19. | Florida State | 22-4 | 152 | 16 |
| 20. | Texas A&M | 22-6 | 95 | 21 |
| 21. | Tennessee | 19-5 | 76 | 24 |
| 22. | Illinois | 16-2 | 60 | 25 |
| 23. | Louisville | 15-8 | 59 | 20 |
| 24. | Baylor | 16-7 | 53 | 22 |
| 25. | Oregon | 18-5 | 35 | RV |
Parenthesis Denotes first place votes.
Dropped Out: BYU
New to Poll: Oregon
Others receiving votes: BYU (22), ULL (16), San Diego State (12), Hawaii (11), UMass (10), Hofstra (8), Lipscomb (4), Fordham (3), DePaul (2) and Fresno State (2).
