Jan. 29, 2013
OKLAHOMA CITY -
University of Arizona Wildcat Softball is ranked 14th in ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 Preseason Poll, released Tuesday. UA finished 13th in 2012 rankings.
The ESPN.com/USA Softball poll is the second softball top 25 to be announced. Arizona was tabbed 13th in the USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Preseason Poll, released last week.
Defending champion Alabama received the top spot in the preseason poll, receiving 13-of-20 first-place votes. The remaining seven went to 2012 runner-up Oklahoma. California, Arizona State and Tennessee round out the top five.
Seven Pac-12 teams are featured in the poll, including three of the top six spots. The conference is represented by California (3), Arizona State (4), Oregon (6), Arizona (14), Washington (16), UCLA (19) and Stanford (20).
In addition to the seven Pac-12 opponents the Wildcats will also face second-ranked Oklahoma (twice), 12th-ranked LSU, 15th-ranked Florida, 13th-ranked Michigan. Additionally, UA will face Northwestern, Virginia Tech and Notre Dame, all of which are receiving votes in the poll.
In total, 23 of Arizona's 56 games will be played against top-25 teams, including 11 against top-10 squads.
Arizona begins its season Feb. 8 when it travels to Tempe for the Kajikawa Classic.
For continued coverage of Arizona Wildcat Softball, visit ArizonaWildcats.com. Be sure to follow Arizona Softball on Twitter (@UA_Softball) and Facebook (ArizonaSoftball).
ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25
Rank Team 2012 Record Points Final 2012 Ranking
1. Alabama (13) 60-8 490 1
2. Oklahoma (7) 54-10 486 2
3. California 58-7 449 3
4. Arizona State 53-11 445 4
5. Tennessee 52-14 414 7
6. Oregon 45-18 390 5
7. Missouri 47-14 346 11
8. Georgia 45-17 332 10
9. Texas 47-13 297 12
10. South Florida 50-14 285 8
11. Louisiana 53-6 272 9
12. LSU 40-25 263 6
13. Michigan 42-17 233 15
14. Arizona 38-19 226 13
15. Florida 48-13 225 16
16. Washington 39-19 213 14
17. Texas A&M 41-18 195 19
18. Louisville 55-5 188 18
19. UCLA 36-20 144 21
20. Stanford 40-19 131 20
21. North Carolina 43-15 69 25
T22. Baylor 34-22 67 RV
T22. Hofstra 42-15 67 17
24. Florida State 47-16 66 22
25. Hawaii 44-9 44 23
