'Dogs Climb Two Spots To No. 22
STARKVILLE, Miss. -- After continued consistency against top 10 programs this past weekend at the NFCA Leadoff Classic in Columbus, Ga., the Mississippi State softball team climbed two spots to No. 22 in the latest USA TODAY/NFCA Top 25 released Wednesday morning. The Bulldogs, which defeated both 8th-ranked Arizona State and 10th-ranked Michigan on Friday at the nation's most premier tournament, jumped up in the poll despite three consecutive losses on 14 errors to finish the tournament. State continues to be one of four Southeastern Conference teams in the rankings, trailing No. 5 LSU, No. 14 Alabama and No. 21 Georgia, but leapfrogging South Carolina which fell five spots to No. 25. Mississippi State will return to action Wednesday afternoon hosting Oakland University of Rochester, Mich., in an afternoon doubleheader. First pitch is set for 1:30 p.m. at the Mississippi State Softball Field and admission is free of charge. All 2002 Mississippi State home games can be viewed via the following live stats link.
USA TODAY/National Fastpitch Coaches Association Division 1 Top 25
(First Place Votes In Parantheses)Rank, School (1st) W-L Pts. LW1. UCLA (27) 17-1 675 12. Arizona 17-2 638 33. Stanford 13-2 626 24. Nebraska 11-5 569 95. LSU 12-5 552 56. California 15-4 538 77. Oklahoma 14-3 523 48. Michigan 8-3 463 109. Arizona State 12-4 451 810. Pacific 10-3 413 1211. Oregon State 16-4 399 1112. Washington 16-6 380 613. Fresno State 10-5 362 1314. Alabama 11-8 317 1815. DePaul 7-2 294 1516. Iowa 7-3 248 1617. CS Fullerton 8-8 220 1418. Florida State 13-6 196 1719. La.-Lafayette 10-2 178 2220. Florida Atlantic 13-3 163 2121. Georgia 21-0 141 2322. Mississippi State 10-5 104 2423. Texas A&M 14-4 88 NR24. Notre Dame 4-6 67 1925. South Carolina 9-5 54 20Others Receiving Votes: Wisconsin 39, Massachusetts 27,Baylor 17, Oklahoma State 7, Ohio State 6.