softball-d1 flag

D1Softball Staff | NCAA.com | January 17, 2023

Powerhouse Oklahoma leads the preseason top 25 college softball rankings for 2023

2023 college softball season preview with D1Softball's Tara Henry

(Editor's note: The following article was first published on D1 Softball.) 

The race to Oklahoma City has become the race to catch Oklahoma. 

And as a new NCAA softball season begins, no one is any closer to solving that riddle than they were the past two seasons. Seeking to match UCLA as the only programs to win three consecutive NCAA Division I titles, Oklahoma takes the field in 2023 as the unanimous No. 1 team in the D1Softball Top 25. 

Here are the full preseason rankings:

Rank Team Final 2022 Record Final 2022 Rank
1 Oklahoma 59-3 1
2 UCLA 51-10 2
3 Oklahoma State 48-14 3
4 Florida State 53-7 12
5 Florida 49-19 5
6 Alabama 44-13 18
7 Northwestern 45-13 6
8 Arkansas 48-11 8
9 Clemson 42-17 15
10 Georgia 43-18 23
11 Stanford 39-22 16
12 Tennessee 41-18 20
13 Virginia Tech 46-10 7
14 Texas 47-22-1 4
15 UCF 49-14 13
16 Kentucky 37-19 19
17 LSU 34-23 NR
18 Arizona 39-22 9
19 Auburn 40-17 NR
20 Louisiana 48-13 24
21 Washington 38-17 21
22 Duke 44-11 14
23 Oregon 33-19 NR
24 North Texas 38-15 NR
25 Ole Miss 41-19 NR

With returning players who account for fully 10 percent of the D1Softball Top 100, led by Tiare Jennings (No. 1), Grace Lyons (No. 4), Cydney Sanders (No. 6), Jordy Bahl (No. 9) and Jayda Coleman (No. 15), the Sooners were an easy pick atop the rankings. After that, it’s a traffic jam worthy of Los Angeles at rush hour — which makes it fitting that UCLA edges out the competition at No. 2. The Bruins need to replace runs and veteran poise, but coming off a trip to the World Series semifinals, they have time to grow behind Megan Faraimo. 

Indeed, with so much uncertainty across the softball map, returning aces are the coin of the realm. 

No. 3 Oklahoma State can lean on Kelly Maxwell as it adjusts to another crop of talented transfers. Kathryn Sandercock leads restocked No. 4 Florida State, while Montana Fouts is the cornerstone for No. 6 Alabama. 

And while No. 5 Florida may not have a lone returning All-American in the circle, most programs only wish they had Lexie Delbrey and Elizabeth Hightower backing up a deep and potent lineup.

Danielle Williams hopes to make it back-to-back trips to OKC with No. 7 Northwestern, and reigning SEC Pitcher of the Year Chenise Delce will give No. 8 Arkansas plenty of time of sort out a lineup retooling without some high-profile bats. 

Rounding out the top 10, No. 9 Clemson is ready to try and take the next step after reaching its first super regional, while No. 10 Georgia begins with three top-100 players in Sara Mosley, Shelby Walters and Sydney Kuma. 

After reaching the national championship series following a thrilling postseason run that began as an unseeded regional road team, No. 14 Texas starts the post-Dolcini era (a brief but prosperous era) as a projected regional host this time around. Another World Series surprise a season ago, No. 18 Arizona checks in solidly inside the top 20 in Caitlin Lowe’s second season.  

And while No. 15 UCF again carries the banner for the programs beyond the Power 5, hoping to repeat last season’s achievement as a national seed in regionals, keep an eye on No. 24 North Texas. A regional finalist a season ago, the Mean Green return almost everyone. 

The SEC leads all conferences with nine ranked teams, while the Pac-12 checks in with five. The ACC (four) and Big 12 (three) also boast multiple ranked teams, while the American Athletic, Big Ten, Conference USA and Sun Belt all place one team in the rankings. 

2023 college softball preview and predictions with D1Softball's Tara Henry

D1Softball's Tara Henry previews the 2023 softball season with a look at their top 25 preseason rankings, top players and pitchers returning this season, under the radar teams, and more.
READ MORE

The top 20 players in college softball for the 2023 season

The D1 Softball staff ranks the top college players headed into the 2023 season, led by No. 1 Tiare Jennings of the two-time defending champion Oklahoma Sooners.
READ MORE

The top 50 programs in college softball, ranked by D1 Softball

These are the elite programs in the sport, ranked by the experts at D1 Softball, and are based on consistent winning in the past decade and how each is positioned for the next five to 10 seasons.
READ MORE

Subscribe To Email Updates

Enter your information to receive emails about offers, promotions from NCAA.com and our partners