KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — After another successful season that saw Tennessee reach the NCAA Super Regionals for the fifth time in six years, the Volunteers are ranked in both national polls to end the season for the 14th straight year.
The Volunteers came in at No. 11 in the final USA Today/NFCA Coaches’ Poll and earned the No. 12 spot in the final ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 Poll after posting a 48-12 overall record.
UT extended its NCAA Tournament streak to 14 consecutive seasons and hosted a regional and super regional after earning the No. 8 national seed.
Oklahoma earned the unanimous No. 1 ranking in both polls after defeating Florida in the Women’s College World Series championship to win its fourth national title in program history and second in a row. The SEC led all conferences with eight teams ranked in the USA Softball Poll and 10 teams ranked in the NFCA Coaches’ Poll.
UT has now finished among the top-20 in both national polls for 14 straight seasons. The Vols posted a 20-game win streak from March 19 through April 22 and finished tied for third in the SEC regular-season standings for the second straight year with a 16-7 conference record.
The Big Orange also played four of the eight teams that advanced to Oklahoma City and defeated each one of them at least once while compiling seven total wins against those schools, including victories over WCWS finalists Oklahoma and Florida.
Junior shortstop Meghan Gregg had a historic season to lead Tennessee, breaking the program’s single-season RBI record with 79. Gregg earned NFCA First-Team All-America honors and became the fifth player in program history to be named the SEC Player of the Year. The Georgia native was also a top-3 finalist for the USA Softball Collegiate Player of the Year award.
To see the complete NFCA Coaches’ Poll click HERE and to see the complete USA Softball Poll click HERE.
