Arizona softball should have swept Kansas and it did. The result was little movement in the national polls but a drop in RPI.
The Wildcats (36-7, 13-5 Big 12) stayed put in three of the four national polls. The only poll that bumped them up was the NFCA.
The Wildcats are at their highest in the D1 Softball poll. That outlet has them at No. 11 in the nation, exactly where they were last week. Softball America also kept the team where it was last week, placing them at No. 12.
The two bigger polls also have a slight difference of opinion about the Wildcats. The USA Today/NFCA poll was the only one to move Arizona up, putting it at No. 12 after having it at No. 13 last week. The ESPN.com/USA Softball kept the Wildcats at No. 13.
The bigger concern was Arizona dropping in RPI after playing No. 60 Kansas because of events around the country. The Wildcats went from No. 11 last week to No. 13 this week.
That placement is still a comfortable position for hosting regionals, but it is becoming less likely that Arizona will host through super regionals. The top eight national seeds host all the way through the super regional round. While the RPI doesn’t correlate exactly to the final seeds, it’s a fairly reliable guide.
Arizona will have an opportunity to improve its seeding beginning on Thursday when it starts a three-game series against Texas Tech. The home series features its last opportunity before the Big 12 Tournament to play a team in the top 25 of the RPI.
It is also an opportunity for Arizona to get back into the race for the Big 12 regular season title. The 13-5 Wildcats need to reel in 14-1 TTU. Arizona only has one conference series to play after this weekend. It goes to last-place Houston to finish the regular season following its conference bye week next week. The Red Raiders play ASU and BYU after coming to Tucson.
Losing the first Big 12 series to UCF looms large over Arizona’s entire ranking landscape.
Around the Big 12
NFCA poll: Arizona (12), Texas Tech (14), Oklahoma State (21)
USA Softball: Arizona (13), Texas Tech (14), Oklahoma State (22)
Softball America: Arizona (12), Texas Tech (14)
D1 Softball: Arizona (11), Texas Tech (14), Oklahoma State (24)
RPI: Arizona (13), Oklahoma State (18), Texas Tech (22), UCF (29), ASU (35), BYU (45), Baylor (58), Kansas (60), Iowa State (61), Houston (78), Utah (111)
Conference Standings:* Texas Tech (.933), Arizona (.722), ASU (.611), Iowa State (.600), BYU (.533), Baylor (.467), Oklahoma State (.462), UCF (.400), Kansas (.267), Utah (.267), Houston (.188)
*Conference standings are based on winning percentage in league games. Oklahoma State and Houston will play fewer games this season because of fires in Stillwater during their series.
Lead photo by Ryan Kelapire