College Rankings: UCLA Final #1 in Both Major Polls (April 7, 2020)

It was about a month ago when we published the last regular weekly college DI rankings and both major polls we use– USA Today/NFCA and ESPN.com/USA Softball—were in agreement on who the final #1 team is for this truncated 2020 season.

Here are the last polls of 2020 which were released earlier today…

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UCLA Unanimous No. 1 in Final 2020 USA Today/NFCA D1 Top 25 Coaches Poll

UCLA was voted the unanimous No. 1 team in the final 2020 USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Coaches Poll. The season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic with all NCAA spring championships canceled on March 12.

With very little competition during the final week of the season (March 9-12), the top 14 teams remained the same with Oklahoma State, which was 13^th last week, moving into a tie with Florida State at No. 12. There was some movement in the final 11 spots as South Carolina and Virginia Tech inched up one spot to No. 15 and 16, respectively, while Arizona State slid from No. 15 to No. 17.

Michigan held firm at No. 18, while No. 19 Arkansas, No. 20 Mississippi State, No. 21 UCF, No. 23 Baylor and No. 24 Fresno State each gravitated one position. No. 22 Minnesota and No. 25 Missouri dropped three and two spots, respectively.

The Bruins (25-1) collected wins over seven nationally-ranked teams, posting an NCAA-best 13 shutouts (tied with Arizona State) along the way. They knocked off Alabama, Georgia and Florida State to come out as the only undefeated team at the ESPN St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Invitational. UCLA also took down Florida, Michigan, UCF and Minnesota, while its lone defeat was at the hands of No. 3 Texas.

In the final top-25 matchup of 2020, No. 7 Florida topped No. 12 Florida State, 5-2, on March 11 in Gainesville. No. 5 LSU, No. 8 Louisiana, No. 9 Oregon, No. 11 Kentucky, Oklahoma State, No. 14 Georgia, Arizona State, South Carolina, Virginia Tech, Minnesota, Arkansas, Mississippi State, UCF and Baylor also picked up victories during the final week of play. Twenty-two ranked programs ended their seasons in triumph.

UCLA led NCAA Division I with 25 wins as 15 top-25 programs finished their respective seasons with 20-plus triumphs.

The Southeastern Conference led the way with nine nationally-ranked programs, while the Pac-12 had four in the top 10, including the top two programs, UCLA and No. 2 Washington, and five overall. Four Big 12 institutions finished ranked led by No. 3 Texas and No. 6 Oklahoma with the Atlantic Coast Conference and Big Ten each having two.

A total of 33 programs earned rankings over seven polls with UCF and Fresno State making their first appearances (March 3) since 2016 and 2017, respectively. On the flip side, Tennessee dropped out of the top-25 on March 3 for the first time since 2004. The Lady Vols entered at No. 19 on Feb. 10, 2004 and were ranked consecutively in 255 polls.

The 2020 USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Poll is voted on by 32 NCAA Division I head coaches, one representing each conference.

2020 USA Today / NFCA Division I
Top 25 Coaches Poll – April 7 (Final)

Dropped Out: None.

Receiving Votes: Duke (49), Stanford (39), Utah (30), North Texas (21), James Madison (20), Texas Tech (15), San Jose State (14), Tennessee (5), Cal State Fullerton (4), Wisconsin (4), Houston (2), North Carolina State (2), Stephen F. Austin (1).

*The NCAA canceled all spring championships on March 12 due to the COVID-19 pandemic

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ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 Poll – Final (April 7, 2020)

No. 1 UCLA (25-1) sits at the top, with the Top 5 remaining intact on the Final ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 Poll. The Bruins were unanimously voted No. 1 for the second time this season and finish first in the Final Poll for the second-straight season. The Bruins only loss came to then-No. 3 Texas on Feb. 27.

No. 2 Washington (23-2) and No. 3 Texas (24-3) switch spots from the Week 5 Poll. Washington won the last 17-of-18 games and sits in the Top 5 on the Final Poll for the fifth straight year.

Texas dropped three of the last 13 before ending the shortened season. The Longhorns finish in the Top 5 for the first time since 2013 when they sat at No. 3 in the Final Poll.

Arizona (22-3) pulled away from LSU for the No. 4 spot in the poll after being tied with the Tigers in Week 5. The Wildcats won 11 straight games to end the season and finish in the Top 5 for the second-straight season.

No. 5 LSU (21-3) finishes the season in the Top 5 for the first time since 2016.

ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25

2020 Season – Final – April 7, 2020

Parenthesis denotes first place votes.

Dropped Out: Missouri
New to Poll: Duke

Others receiving votes: Stanford (41), Missouri (36), Utah (33), North Texas (29), San Jose State (18), James Madison (7), North Carolina State (4), Texas A&M (4), Loyola Marymount (1), Oregon State (1), South Florida (1)