Gator Softball Ranked No. 15 in ESPN.com/USA Softball Preseason Collegiate Top 25
Tuesday, January 29, 2013 | Softball
Just a week after checking in at No. 14 in the USA Today/NFCA Division I Top 25 Poll, the Florida softball team is ranked No. 15 in the second and final collegiate preseason Top 25 poll, released by ESPN.com/USA Softball Tuesday.
Florida has been ranked or receiving votes in every ESPN.com/USA Softball Poll since its inception in 2003 and the Gators are one of seven SEC teams ranked in USA Softball's preseason poll, with Alabama leading the way at No. 1.
The ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 Poll is currently in its 11th year. Starting Feb. 12, regular season polls will be released for 14 consecutive Tuesdays with the final poll of the season to be released on June 11 following the WCWS. The first of 14 USA Softball Collegiate Players of the Week will also be announced on Feb. 12 with a new player chosen each Tuesday of the regular season.
The Orange and Blue concluded the 2012 season with a 48-13 overall record, boasting a 21-7 mark in Southeastern Conference play for UF's fifth-straight 20-win league campaign. Florida received a NCAA Tournament bid for the 13th time in school history and hosted a NCAA Regional for the eighth consecutive season after picking up the No. 5 national seed, the program's fifth straight campaign securing a top-five seed.
In addition to conducting the ESPN.com/USA Softball collegiate Top 25 Poll and the USA Softball Player of the Week, ASA/USA Softball is also in the 12th season of the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award. The Top 50 Watch List for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year will be announced Feb. 1 with the Top 25 announced April 10, the Top 10 announced May 8 and the Top 3 announced May 22. The 2012 USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year will be revealed May 28.
UF will kick off the 2013 campaign in Tempe, Ariz., at the Kajikawa Classic Feb. 8-10, hosted by Arizona State University. The Gators will square off with three preseason top-15 opponents at the season-opening tournament, including dates with No. 3 Cal, No. 5 Oregon and No. 13 Arizona. Florida opens the campaign in Tempe against Creighton Feb. 8 at 5 p.m. (ET). Be sure to check out Florida's complete 2013 schedule on GatorZone.com.
Be sure to follow the Gators on Twitter and visit the team on Facebook for all the latest on Florida softball.
Click here to see the complete listing of the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate 2013 Top 25 Pre-Season Poll.
2013 ESPN.com/USA Softball Preseason 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-Lafayette | 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 |
Parenthesis denotes first place votes
Dropped Out: None
New to Poll: None
Others receiving votes: Notre Dame (24); Syracuse (23); Kentucky (20); Georgia Tech (18); Virginia Tech (17); Tulsa (14); Texas Tech (12); Mississippi State (9); Oregon State (8); Northwestern (7); Oklahoma State (3); Central Florida (3); South Alabama (2); UMASS (2); BYU (1)
