College Station, TEXAS – The Texas A&M softball team will start the 2015 season ranked No. 24 in both national polls after the ESPN.com/USA Softball Preseason Top 25, released today, matched the NFCA/USA Today poll's prediction for the Aggies.
The Southeastern Conference (SEC) once again led the nation with nine member schools in the top 25, including No. 1 Florida, the 2014 national champion. Also representing the conference in the top 10 are No. 4 Alabama, No. 7 Kentucky and No. 10 Georgia. As with the USA Today poll, five other SEC teams fall in the next 15 places, including No. 14 Tennessee, No. 17 Missouri, No. 18 LSU, No. 19 Auburn and the Aggies at No. 24. Mississippi State and South Carolina are receiving votes in the preseason poll.
The Aggies' 2015 schedule includes seven teams from the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll. Texas A&M will host No. 7 Kentucky and No. 19 Auburn during conference action, and will play the top-ranked Gators, No. 2 Oregon, No. 4 Alabama, Â No. 6 UCLA and No. 18 LSU away from home. Receiving votes and on the Aggies' slate are Cal State Fullerton and Mississippi State.
The 24th-ranked Aggies start the 2015 season on Feb. 6 at SoCal Collegiate Classic, beginning the team's search for a 14th-straight trip to the NCAA Tournament and a berth to the Women's College World Series.
To learn more about Texas A&M softball, log on to 12thMan.com and follow @AggieSoftball on Twitter.
ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25
2015 Season – Pre-season – January 27, 2015
|
Rank |
Team |
2014 Record |
Points |
Final 2014 Ranking |
|
1. |
Florida (15) |
55-12 |
492 |
1 |
|
2. |
Oregon (4) |
56-9-1 |
475 |
3 |
|
3. |
Oklahoma |
51-13 |
429 |
4 |
|
4. |
Alabama |
53-13 |
423 |
2 |
|
5. |
Florida State |
55-9 |
417 |
7 |
|
6. |
UCLA (1) |
52-8 |
391 |
9 |
|
7. |
Kentucky |
50-19 |
374 |
6 |
|
8. |
Michigan |
47-15 |
367 |
10 |
|
9. |
Louisiana-Lafayette |
49-10-1 |
318 |
8 |
|
10. |
Georgia |
49-15 |
290 |
12 |
|
11. |
Baylor |
49-16 |
280 |
5 |
|
12. |
Arizona |
44-16 |
266 |
T14 |
|
13. |
Washington |
37-15 |
251 |
13 |
|
14. |
Tennessee |
46-12 |
239 |
11 |
|
15. |
Minnesota |
44-12 |
210 |
T14 |
|
16. |
Arizona State |
46-12-1 |
197 |
16 |
|
17. |
Missouri |
43-18 |
185 |
18 |
|
18. |
LSU |
38-24 |
177 |
22 |
|
19. |
Auburn |
42-19-1 |
162 |
21 |
|
20. |
Nebraska |
44-18 |
122 |
17 |
|
21. |
Notre Dame |
41-13 |
98 |
20 |
|
22. |
Tulsa |
53-9 |
61 |
19 |
|
23. |
South Alabama |
42-14 |
59 |
23 |
|
24. |
Texas A&M |
37-22 |
32 |
RV |
|
25. |
Texas |
35-23 |
31 |
RV |
Parenthesis denotes first place votes.
Dropped Out: None
New to Poll: None
Others receiving votes: Wisconsin (26), DePaul (24), USC Upstate (20), NC State (18), James Madison (15), Central Florida (13), North Carolina (7), Louisville (6), California (5), Stanford (4), South Carolina (4), Cal State Fullerton (3), Western Kentucky (3), Northwestern (2), Mississippi State (2), South Florida (1), Virginia Tech (1)