LOUISVILLE, Ky. – No. 1 Washington knocked of Alabama twice and remained undefeated in this week’s USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Coaches Poll. The Huskies (23-0) received 29 first-place votes and 795 points as the Southeastern Conference (5) and Pac-12 (4) Conference own nine spots in the top-10.
Washington welcomed then-No. 11 Alabama to its home-opening tournament. The Huskies began their home campaign with an 8-0 victory over the Crimson Tide and topped them 4-1 the next day. UW also defeated Northwestern (8-2), BYU (7-4) and Portland State (4-1).
Florida, which received one first-place vote and 760 points, went 3-0 at a rain-shorted Judi Garman Classic. The Gators (19-1) did not allow a run as they defeated host Cal State Fullerton (13-0), Loyola Marymount (10-0) and then-No. 8 Baylor (4-0)
No. 3 UCLA, along with the top-ranked Huskies and new-No. 24 USC Upstate (18-0), are the only remaining undefeated teams in NCAA DI. The Bruins (19-0) posted a 4-0 record at the San Diego Classic I, which included a 12-4 triumph over then-No. 21 Minnesota.
Tennessee and Oklahoma switched spots. The No. 4 Lady Vols (21-1) went 5-0 hosting the Tennessee invitational, while the No. 5 Sooners (13-2) defeated Abilene Christian and Missouri State twice during their Marriot Classic.
No. 6 Oregon and No. 7 Texas A&M remained in their rankings. The Ducks (18-4) put forth a 6-1 showing in the Sunshine State. They swept a doubleheader from USF and went 4-1 at Florida State’s tournament. Oregon split with the host Seminoles, topping them 5-0 and falling 2-1 in a game that saw Duck Megan Kleist toss a no-hitter.
The Aggies (18-3) also went 6-1 last week. They swept Sam Houston State at home and added a 4-1 mark at their own Texas A&M Invite, splitting with then-RV Utah and topping Louisiana Tech twice and RV Texas State.
LSU moved from 10th to eighth, sweeping through their home tournament. No. 9 Arizona took a three-game road series from Texas, winning games one and three. Auburn joined the top-10 as the 10th-ranked Tigers (23-2) put together a 5-0 showing at their Wilson/DeMarini Tournament.
USC Upstate makes its first appearance in the top-25. The 24th-ranked Spartans added six victories to their resume, including a 5-0 mark at their Wings Etc. Classic. Minnesota fell out of the top-25 for the first time this season.
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 March 4.
2018 USA Today / NFCA Division I
Top 25 Coaches Poll – March 6 (Week 4)
Rank
School
Totals
2018
Last Poll
1
Washington (29)
795
23-0
1
2
Florida (1)
760
19-1
2
3
UCLA (2)
747
19-0
3
4
Tennessee
681
21-1
5
5
Oklahoma
671
13-2
4
6
Oregon
626
18-4
6
7
Texas A&M
605
18-3
7
8
LSU
583
19-2
10
9
Arizona
534
15-2
9
10
Auburn
485
23-2
12
11
Georgia
463
18-1
14
12
Baylor
450
11-3
8
13
Alabama
395
12-5
11
14
Arizona State
375
16-2
16
15
Florida State
360
15-6
13
16
Ohio State
276
11-1
19
17
California
262
18-3
15
18
South Carolina
256
19-1
20
19
Ole Miss
249
13-3
17
20
Louisiana
167
12-5
18
21
Long Beach State
157
16-4
22
22
Michigan
123
13-6
25
23
Kentucky
79
14-3
24
24
USC Upstate
62
18-0
RV
25
McNeese State
52
16-5
23
New to Poll: No. 24 USC Upstate
Dropped Out: No. 21 Minnesota
Receiving Votes: Minnesota (33), James Madison (31), Mississippi State (29), Arkansas (27), Oklahoma State (19), Louisville (13), Texas State (13), Hofstra (7), Texas (7), Nebraska (4), Houston (3), Wichita State (1).
The 2018 USA Today / NFCA Division I Top 25 Coaches Poll is voted on by 32 NCAA Division I head coaches with one representing each of the NCAA’s Division I Conferences. Records reflect play through March 4, 2018