LOUISVILLE, Ky. – No. 1 Washington extended its winning streak to 27 games and continues as the No. 1 team in this week’s USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Coaches Poll. The Huskies (27-0) received 29 first-place votes and 794 points as the first nine spots remained the same.
The Southeastern Conference (5) and Pac-12 (4) Conference own nine spots in the top-10. In all, the SEC has 11 programs ranked, while the Pac-12 has six and Big 12 three. Last week, teams ranked one through nine went a combined 41-0.
Washington traveled to Las Vegas for UNLV’s Rebel Classic and added four more wins to its resume. The Huskies run-ruled New Mexico State and the host Rebels, before two close victories over DePaul (5-2) and the Aggies (3-2 in 10 inn.) UW hosts Bryant before heading to Tempe for its Pac-12 opener at No. 14 Arizona State (21-2).
Florida, which received one first-place vote and 760 points, opened SEC play with a three-game sweep of then-No. 23 Kentucky at home (6-0, 3-2, 4-0), while No. 3 UCLA’s offensive exploded in Long Beach. The Bruins (24-0), who picked up the final two first-place votes, earned four decisive wins over Michigan State (10-0), San Jose State (10-0), Boston University (10-2) and then-No. 16 Ohio State (11-0) before edging the hosts and then-21st ranked LBSU, 6-5.
The Bruins head to No. 6 Oregon to open Pac-12 play this weekend.
No. 4 Tennessee swept Missouri (7-4, 7-0, 11-3) in its SEC opener at home. No. 5 Oklahoma went 6-0 in non-conference action at home, which included a pair of triumphs over No. 18 South Carolina (4-2, 5-1).
No. 6 Oregon (23-4) and No. 9 Arizona (21-2) picked up five and six non-conference wins, respectively. No. 7 Texas A&M (24-3) earned three non-conference victories before sweeping then-No. 19 Ole Miss (8-6, 7-0, 2-0) in SEC play.
In the most competitive series of the SEC’s opening weekend, No. 8 LSU (22-2) swept then-No. 10 Auburn (23-5) in three highly-contested one-run games, including a 14-inning affair (3-2) in the opener.
Georgia has made a steady climb up the poll and is joining the top-10 for the first time in 2018. The Bulldogs (20-1) posted shutouts against Western Carolina (6-0) and Arkansas (8-0) last week.
Mississippi State (21-3) is the 11th SEC program to join the rankings as it makes its first appearance of 2018 at No. 21. Oklahoma State (19-6) returns to the poll this week at No. 25. Dropping out were USC Upstate (18-6) and McNeese State (16-8).
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 11.
2018 USA Today / NFCA Division I
Top 25 Coaches Poll – March 13 (Week 5)
Rank
School
Totals
2018
Last Poll
1
Washington (29)
794
27-0
1
2
Florida (1)
760
22-1
2
3
UCLA (2)
747
24-0
3
4
Tennessee
701
24-1
4
5
Oklahoma
656
19-2
5
6
Oregon
625
23-4
6
7
Texas A&M
614
24-3
7
8
LSU
587
22-2
8
9
Arizona
524
21-2
9
10
Georgia
499
20-1
11
11
Baylor
476
17-3
12
12
Alabama
416
17-5
13
13
Arizona State
407
21-2
14
14
Auburn
397
23-5
10
15
Florida State
347
18-6
15
16
California
311
23-3
17
17
Ohio State
296
14-2
16
18
South Carolina
254
21-3
18
19
Michigan
201
18-6
22
20
Louisiana
149
14-6
20
21
Mississippi State
136
21-3
RV
22
Long Beach State
121
19-7
21
23
Ole Miss
93
13-7
19
24
Kentucky
85
15-6
23
25
Oklahoma State
74
19-6
RV
New to Poll: No. 21 Mississippi State, No. 25 Oklahoma State
Dropped Out: No. 24 USC Upstate (18-6), No. 25 McNeese State (16-8)
Receiving Votes: Louisville (28), James Madison (19), Texas State (17), Wichita State (14), Lipscomb (11), Arkansas (11), Minnesota (9), Nebraska (9), USC Upstate (8), Hofstra (2), Texas Tech (1), Western Kentucky (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 11, 2018