Week 4 of the 2024 college softball season brought all the action.
Oklahoma's historic 71-game winning streak came to an end Sunday against the Louisiana bats. Will that loss affect the Sooners' previous No. 1 ranking? That wasn't the only surprise this week, as eight different ranked teams lost to unranked opponents.
Meanwhile, LSU continued to advance as the only undefeated team in the country, and Texas, with one loss, continued to dominate, posting three mercy-rule wins at the Longhorn Invitational.
So what does all this mean for this week's ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 rankings? And who are the main stars at the moment?
This is how the top 25 perform, as well as the players to watch.
Players to watch
Keagan Rothrock, RHP/1B, Florida. The right-handed freshman is making her mark to start this season. She has a 0.67 ERA, the fifth-best mark in the SEC, in 62.1 innings pitched. Her 74 strikeouts tie her for the ninth-best mark nationally. She is 8-2 on the season and has played a big role in the Gators' dominant start.
Keagan Rothrock made history last night‼️
🔸35th complete no-hitter in program history and first no-hitter by a freshman since 2020.
🔸First freshman to throw a full-game no-no at KSP Stadium since 2016.#GoGators | @_kea01 pic.twitter.com/WsdPitajRE
– Gators Softball (@GatorsSB) February 24, 2024
Reese Atwood, C/1B, Texas. No one in the game is doing it like Atwood. He leads the nation with 37 RBIs, ranks second with 10 home runs and his .527 batting average is eighth best. Atwood needs eight more home runs to tie Taylor Hoagland for the Longhorns' single-season program record. Her impressive start to the season has already made her a two-time Big 12 Player of the Week. Defensively, she boasts a .957 fielding percentage with 39 putouts. Atwood has continued to help lead this Texas team to new heights.
🔥🔥🔥#HookThem | @atwood_reese pic.twitter.com/etAi32GPKF
— Texas Softball (@TexasSoftball) March 1, 2024
Top 25 in the current ranking
Here's the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 poll as of March 5, plus information on each team's next game.
All times Eastern.
1. Texas (11 first-place votes)
Record: 18-1
Next game: vs. UT Arlington (Wednesday), 7 p.m. on Longhorn Network
2.Oklahoma
Record: 18-1
Next game: vs. Texas A&M Commerce (Wednesday), 7 p.m. on ESPN+
3. L.S.U.
Record: 19-0
Next game: in Kentucky (Friday), 6:30 p.m. on SECN+
4. Duke
Record: 16-1
Next game: at Elon (Tuesday), 5 p.m.
5.Washington
Record: 16-2
Next game: vs. Arizona State (Friday), 9 p.m.
6. Georgia
Record: 15-3
First game: vs. Miami (OH) (Friday), 6 pm on SECN+
7. Oklahoma State
Record: 17-2
Next game: vs. Wichita State (Wednesday), 6 p.m. on ESPN+
8.Stanford
Record: 13-4
Next game: vs. Pacific (Wednesday), 7 p.m.
9. Tennessee
Record: 13-4
Next game: at Clemson (Tuesday), 2 p.m. at ACCNX
10.Alabama
Record: 19-1
First game: vs. Florida (Saturday), 3 pm on SECN+
11. Clemson
Record: 13-4
Next game: vs. Tennessee (Tuesday), 6 p.m. on ACCNX
12. Missouri
Record: 17-2
Next game: in Kansas City (Wednesday), 5 p.m.
13.florida
Record: 19-3
Next game: in Alabama (Saturday), 3 pm on SECN+
14.Baylor
Record: 11-3
Next game: at Sam Houston (Tuesday), 7:30 p.m. on ESPN+
15. Virginia Tech
Record: 15-3-1
Next game: at Eastern Kentucky (Wednesday), 4 p.m. on ESPN+
16. Florida State
Record: 11-4
Next game: vs. Purdue (Friday), 12:15 p.m.
17.California
Record: 19-2
Next game: vs. Saint Mary's (Tuesday), 6 p.m.
18.UCLA
Record: 11-6
Next game: vs. Utah (Friday), 10 p.m.
19. Texas A&M
Record: 19-2
Next game: vs. North Texas (Wednesday), 7 pm on SECN+
20.Arkansas
Record: 17-4
Next game: vs. Nebraska (Thursday), 5 pm on SECN+
21.Kentucky
Record: 13-4
Next game: vs. Bellarmine (Wednesday), 5 pm on SECN+
22. South Carolina
Record: 18-2
Next game: vs. USC Upstate (Wednesday), 6 p.m. on SECN+
23. Mississippi State
Record: 17-3
Next game: at Ole Miss (Friday), 7 pm on SECN+
24. Arizona
Record: 17-3-1
Next game: in Louisville (Tuesday), 5:30 p.m. on ACCNX
25. Chestnut
Record: 12-2-1
Next game: vs. Troy (Tuesday), 6:30 p.m. on SECN+
