The first games of the 2021 NCAA DI softball season were held over Valentine’s Day weekend and it was a record-setting start to the new year as Oklahoma blasted 13 home runs in its opening game and Duke knocked off a Top 10 team.
After all the action in Week 1, here are the latest college rankings…
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UCLA still atop, Duke climbs in USA Today/NFCA DI Top 25 Poll
Following an opening weekend during which Mother Nature did not cooperate, UCLA remained atop and Duke shot up the ranks of this week’s 2021 USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Coaches Poll. The Bruins (1-0) captured 31 first-place votes and 799 points, while the Blue Devils jolted to No. 18 after a 4-0 start to their 2021 campaign.
UCLA topped then-RV Fresno State, 7-0, to open its season, but had its final two contests canceled due to COVID-related protocols within the Cal Poly program. Fresh off its first-ever NFCA top-25 ranking in the preseason poll (25th), Duke made the most of its trip to Baton Rouge with four wins, including an 8-4 triumph over Tiger Classic host and then-No. 5 LSU. The Blue Devils also defeated Central Arkansas twice and McNeese State.
Washington remained at No. 2 with a perfect 5-0 showing at UNLV’s Rebel Kickoff. The Huskies (5-0) picked up two wins each over Southern Utah (8-0, 19-13) and Dixie State (6-5, 7-0) and another against the host Rebels (8-2).
Oklahoma’s offense showed no signs of a 300-plus day layoff as it pushed across 70 runs over a four-game stretch at the Miner Invitational hosted by UTEP. Moving into the No. 3 spot this week, the Sooners (4-0) launched an NCAA single-game record 13 home runs in a 29-0 victory over host UTEP. Following 9-0 and 11-0 wins over Abilene Christian, OU hit eight more long balls in a 21-2 triumph over the Miners. For the weekend, the Sooners blasted 24 home runs and registered 69 hits.
A season-opening tournament hosted by No. 7 Texas and featuring No. 5 Alabama and No. 4 Arizona was canceled due to wintery conditions in the Lone Star state. No. 9 Louisiana joined the Longhorns and Wildcats as top-10 programs who were unable to start their 2021 campaigns.
The Crimson Tide rose to the No. 5 spot after they found some last-minute opponents. Alabama’s arms tossed four shutouts and surrendered a total of six hits over 24 innings in victories over Alabama State (10-0), RV Notre Dame (10-0) and Louisville (5-0, 4-0).
No. 6 Florida started the season with road wins against in-state foe USF (6-3, 15-0). LSU dipped to No. 8 as it posted a 2-1 mark with victories over McNeese (8-0) and Kansas (5-3). No. 10 Oregon captured five wins at the GCU Kickoff Classic. The Ducks (5-0) earned two wins each over Weber State (9-0, 8-0) and Montana (8-0, 9-1) and one over the host Lopes (5-3).
No teams moved in or out of the poll, but there was some shuffling amongst teams 12 through 25.
The 2021 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 Feb. 14.
2021 USA Today / NFCA Division I
Top 25 Coaches Poll – February 16 (Week 1)
| Rank | School | Points | Record | Last Week |
| 1 | UCLA (31) | 799 | 1-0 | 1 |
| 2 | Washington | 749 | 5-0 | 2 |
| 3 | Oklahoma (1) | 732 | 4-0 | 4 |
| 4 | Arizona | 704 | 0-0 | 3 |
| 5 | Alabama | 639 | 4-0 | 8 |
| 6 | Florida | 620 | 2-0 | 7 |
| 7 | Texas | 602 | 0-0 | 6 |
| 8 | LSU | 559 | 2-1 | 5 |
| 9 | Louisiana | 539 | 0-0 | 9 |
| 10 | Oregon | 504 | 5-0 | 10 |
| 11 | Oklahoma State | 484 | 2-0 | 11 |
| 12 | Kentucky | 418 | 3-0 | 13 |
| 13 | Florida State | 408 | 3-1 | 12 |
| 14 | Virginia Tech | 351 | 3-0 | 15 |
| 15 | Arizona State | 336 | 4-0 | 16 |
| 16 | Georgia | 283 | 2-1 | 14 |
| 17 | Michigan | 261 | 0-0 | 17 |
| 18 | Duke | 223 | 4-0 | 25 |
| 19 | South Carolina | 221 | 0-0 | 19 |
| 20 | Arkansas | 212 | 0-1 | 18 |
| 21 | Missouri | 181 | 3-1 | 23 |
| 22 | Mississippi State | 174 | 2-0 | 20 |
| 23 | Baylor | 127 | 0-0 | 22 |
| 24 | UCF | 100 | 3-1 | 21 |
| 25 | Minnesota | 60 | 0-0 | 24 |
Receiving Votes: Utah (32) Tennessee (24), Stanford (22), Liberty (7), Northwestern (7), Oregon State (7), Texas Tech (7), Clemson (6), James Madison (1), Notre Dame (1).
The 2021 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 games played through Feb. 14.
*Programs not competing in 2021 will not be eligible for ranking consideration.
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ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25
2021 Season – Week 1 – Feb. 16, 2021
After opening week of the 2021 season, UCLA (1-0) remains the top-ranked team with a solo win against Fresno State. No. 2 Oklahoma (4-0) moves up two spots after scoring a combined total of 70 runs in four games, posting two run-rule victories apiece over UTEP and Abilene Christian.
No. 3 Washington drops one spot following an undefeated 5-0 weekend at the UNLV Tournament in Las Vegas, Nev., with wins over Southern Utah, Dixie State and UNLV. Arizona (0-0) comes in at No. 4 after inclement weather in the Austin area cancelled the Texas Classic.
No. 5 Florida (2-0) jumps into the Top 5 with two wins over South Florida, which included walk-off and run-rule victories over the Bulls.
| 1. | 
UCLA (18) |
Preseason Rank: 1 |
| Points: 495 | ||
| 2. | 
Oklahoma (1) |
Preseason Rank: 4 |
| Points: 453 | ||
| 3. | 
Washington |
Preseason Rank: 2 |
| Points: 451 | ||
| 4. | 
Arizona |
Preseason Rank: 3 |
| Points: 431 | ||
| 5. | 
Florida (1) |
Preseason Rank: 6 |
| Points: 413 | ||
| 6. | 
Alabama |
Preseason Rank: 8 |
| Points: 404 | ||
| 7. | 
Texas |
Preseason Rank: 7 |
| Points: 355 | ||
| 8. | 
Oklahoma State |
Preseason Rank: 10 |
| Points: 338 | ||
| 9. | 
LSU |
Preseason Rank: 5 |
| Points: 330 | ||
| 10. | 
Louisiana |
Preseason Rank: 9 |
| Points: 323 | ||
| 11. | 
Oregon |
Preseason Rank: 11 |
| Points: 322 | ||
| 12. | 
Kentucky |
Preseason Rank: 13 |
| Points: 261 | ||
| 13. | 
Arizona State |
Preseason Rank: 15 |
| Points: 259 | ||
| 14. | 
Florida State |
Preseason Rank: 12 |
| Points: 245 | ||
| 15. | 
Virginia Tech |
Preseason Rank: 16 |
| Points: 199 | ||
| 16. | 
Georgia |
Preseason Rank: 14 |
| Points: 164 | ||
| 17. | 
Michigan |
Preseason Rank: 17 |
| Points: 139 | ||
| 18. | 
Baylor |
Preseason Rank: 18 |
| Points: 132 | ||
| 19. | 
Duke |
Preseason Rank: RV |
| Points: 121 | ||
| 20. | 
South Carolina |
Preseason Rank: 19 |
| Points: 110 | ||
| 21. | 
Missouri |
Preseason Rank: 24 |
| Points: 104 | ||
| 22. | 
Minnesota |
Preseason Rank: 20 |
| Points: 89 | ||
| 23. | 
Tennessee |
Preseason Rank: 23 |
| Points: 84 | ||
| 24. |
|
Preseason Rank: 22 |
| Points: 72 | ||
| 25. | 
Arkansas |
Preseason Rank: 21 |
| Points: 71 |
Mississippi StateParenthesis denotes first place votes.
Dropped Out: UCF
New to Poll: Duke
Others receiving votes: Oregon State (28), UCF (23), Auburn (16), Georgia Tech (16), Northwestern (16), Texas A&M (10), Stanford (8), South Florida (6), Utah (6), Clemson (5), Ohio State (5), NC State (2), Texas Tech (1).
The ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 Poll is voted on by coaching representatives of 10 Division I Conferences in the 10 USA Softball Regions as well as members of the National and Local media who consistently cover Division I Softball across the country.
