Sports
College softball rankings: 2026 NCAA Week 4 Top 25 poll
There are no new teams in this week’s poll, and the top three squads held their places. After a week of blowout wins (that we will get to below), Oklahoma jumped Nebraska for the No. 4 ranking. Alabama and UCLA also edged closer to the top of the table. For now, there hasn’t been much of a shakeup, but with still-undefeated Tennessee playing also-ranked LSU in a three-game series, perhaps this week could be a chaotic one for the best team in the nation.
Player to watch
Kendall Wells, C, Oklahoma
Oklahoma’s offense, as we’ll get to below, has been on fire this season, and Wells has been just as responsible for its performance as anybody. The catcher already has a whopping 15 home runs on the season. For reference, Oklahoma’s next opponent, North Texas, has 19 home runs on the season…as a team.
Top moment
WHAT A NIGHT 🤩
The Sooners scored 21 runs in a singular inning!#NCAASoftball x 🎥 SECN+ / @OU_Softball pic.twitter.com/80cT5DjQZz
— NCAA Softball (@NCAASoftball) March 1, 2026
In the third inning of a 29-6 win over Alabama State on Saturday, Oklahoma drove in a stunning 21 runs, the second-highest single-inning run total in NCAA softball history. The historic frame included two grand slams and 24 plate appearances.
Game to watch
No. 1 Tennessee vs. No. 16 LSU
6 p.m. on Friday (SEC Network+)
Undefeated Tennessee has already notched five wins against ranked opponents this season and will look to continue that streak in a three-game series against LSU that begins on Friday. The Tigers, on the other hand, have lost their only two ranked matchups–in a tight loss to Duke and a shutout against UCLA. Can they get a statement win against the Lady Vols?
How to watch
Everything college softball on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SEC Network, ACC Network, Big 12 Now on ESPN+, ESPN3, ESPN+, SEC Network+ and ACCNX is accessible here, in addition to being available on the ESPN App.
What’s the full schedule?
You can check out the complete scoreboard here to stay up to date this spring.
Subscribe to ESPN | Stream college softball on ESPN
Week 4 Top 25
Here is the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 ranking, plus each team’s record and next game.
All times Eastern.
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1. Tennessee
Previous rank: 1
Record: 19-0
Next game: Tuesday vs. Belmont, 5 p.m., SEC Network+
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2. Texas Tech
Previous rank: 2
Record: 22-1
Next game: Friday at Houston, 7 p.m., ESPN+
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3. Texas
Previous rank: 3
Record: 19-1
Next game: Friday at South Carolina, 6 p.m.
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4. Oklahoma
Previous rank: 5
Record: 19-2
Next game: Tuesday at North Texas, 7 p.m., ESPN+
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5. Nebraska
Previous rank: 4
Record: 14-5
Next game: Thursday vs. South Dakota State, 5 p.m., Big Ten Plus
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6. Alabama
Previous rank: 7
Record: 20-0
Next game: Friday at Ole Miss, 7 p.m., SEC Network+
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7. UCLA
Previous rank: 9
Record: 18-3
Next game: Friday vs. Wisconsin, 10 p.m.
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8. Florida
Previous rank: 6
Record: 23-1
Next game: Saturday vs. Missouri, 1 p.m., SEC Network+
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9. Arkansas
Previous rank: 8
Record: 19-1
Next game: Friday vs. Georgia, 7 p.m., SEC Network+
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10. Florida State
Previous rank: 10
Record: 17-4
Next game: Wednesday vs. Jacksonville University, 4 p.m.
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11. Virginia Tech
Previous rank: 12
Record: 16-2
Next game: Thursday vs. Michigan, 6:30 p.m.
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T12. Georgia
Previous rank: 11
Record: 17-5
Next game: Wednesday vs. Georgia State, 6 p.m., SEC Network+
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T12. Oklahoma State
Previous rank: 16
Record: 15-5
Next game: Tuesday vs. Missouri State, 7 p.m., ESPN+
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14. Arizona
Previous rank: 14
Record: 17-5
Next game: Thursday vs. BYU, 8 p.m., ESPN+
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15. Texas A&M
Previous rank: 15
Record: 15-7
Next game: Wednesday vs. Louisiana Tech, 7 p.m., SEC Network+
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16. LSU
Previous rank: T17
Record: 17-4
Next game: Friday at Tennessee, 6 p.m., SEC Network+
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17. Mississippi State
Previous rank: 19
Record: 18-2
Next game: Wednesday at UAB, 6 p.m., ESPN+
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18. Oregon
Previous rank: T17
Record: 13-6
Next game: Wednesday at Oregon State, 9 p.m., ESPN+
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19. Stanford
Previous rank: 13
Record: 11-6
Next game: Friday vs. Pitt, 9 p.m.
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20. Virginia
Previous rank: 21
Record: 19-1
Next game: Tuesday at Radford, 2 p.m., ESPN+
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21. Arizona State
Previous rank: 23
Record: 19-3
Next game: Friday vs. Utah, 8 p.m., ESPN+
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22. Washington
Previous rank: 24
Record: 15-6
Next game: Tuesday vs. Seattle, 9:30 p.m., Big Ten Plus
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23. Grand Canyon
Previous rank: 25
Record: 22-0
Next game: Thursday vs. Wisconsin, 5 p.m.
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24. South Carolina
Previous rank: 22
Record: 15-6
Next game: Friday vs. Texas, 6 p.m.
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25. Duke
Previous rank: 20
Record: 12-9
Next game: Friday at Cal, 5 p.m.
Sports
Liverpool lose 9th of season in ‘same old story,’ Slot says
WOLVERHAMPTON, England — Arne Slot said Liverpool’s 2-1 defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers on Tuesday is a case of the “same old story” after his team conceded yet another late winner in the Premier League.
Wolves midfielder Andre secured the victory for the hosts with a deflected strike in the 94th minute at Molineux Stadium. It means Liverpool have now lost five games thanks to goals after the 90th minute this term; the most of any side in a single campaign in the competition’s history.
“How do I sum this up?” Slot said of his team’s ninth Premier League loss of the season. “Same old story. Recently, we are picking up points because we score many times from set-pieces, but what didn’t change in the last five, six seven games is that we struggle and find it very hard to score from open play chances that we do create.
“Not as much as I would like from all the ball possession we have, but enough and far more than the other team. But the end result is we scored one and they scored two and another one in injury time so it sums up our season again.
“We have had far more possession than the other team, we have created more in open play in general than the other team, but have struggled to score from open play. Recently we have scored a lot from set-pieces. Again we had a lot of set-pieces, but in the first half were very poorly taken.
“I don’t think we played a very good first half, the second half was better, still not great, but better. We created more, and the just before injury time we were twice very close from chances to make it 2-1.
“Mo [Salah] was dribbling and had to the left and right two players open, but the ball was intercepted by their defender and there was the Virgil [van Dijk] header, and the one we conceded wasn’t even a chance.
“That has happened to us so many times this season. That it happened in injury time may be a coincidence, although it has happened so many times. We hardly gave away a chance today, we gave away one chance and conceded two.”
Liverpool’s latest defeat leaves them in fifth place, though they could drop to sixth if Chelsea beat Aston Villa at Villa Park on Wednesday.
Reflecting on whether the loss has impacted his team’s chances of Champions League qualification, Slot said: “It’s another setback and we didn’t help ourselves with this result, not at all. But there are still nine games to play. We are coming closer and closer to the end.
“Dropping points in a game where it’s absolutely not necessary. If you look at the run of play, I’m not saying we played great, but if we play this game in this fashion 10 times we don’t lose 10 times.
“It’s far from sure that we win every time, therefore we are not good enough. If we don’t have to rely on a deflected shot, we have to play better and do better. But we’ve had enough chances to win the game.
“But credit to Wolves as well. They fight from first second until the end and got maybe a bit of a luck they deserve when you look at how much they put in throughout the whole game.”
Sports
Eileen Gu reflects on decision to leave Team USA for China: ‘A lot of people just don’t understand’
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Eileen Gu released a statement on social media Monday, reflecting on her controversial decision to compete for Team China despite being born and raised in the U.S.
Gu’s statement tied the decision back to her passion for promoting women’s sports, and encouraging young girls to pursue sports.
“I gave my first speech on women in sports and title IX when I was 11 years old. I talked about being the only girl on my ski team, and, despite attending an all-girls’ school from Monday through Friday, becoming best friends with my teammates on the weekends through the common language of sport,” Gu wrote on Instagram.
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Silver medalist Eileen Gu of China poses for photos after the awarding ceremony of the freestyle skiing women’s freeski big air event at the Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Livigno, Italy, Feb. 16, 2026. (Photo by Wang Peng/Xinhua via Getty Images) (Wang Peng/Xinhua via Getty Images)
“At the same time, I was made painfully aware of the lack of representation – at age 9, I felt that I was somehow representing all women every time I stepped in the terrain park. Landing tricks was about more than progression … it was about disproving the derisive implication of what it meant to ‘ski like a girl.'”
Gu went on to express gratitude for the one season in which she did compete for the U.S.
“When I was 15, I announced my decision to compete for China. At the time, I had spent one season on the US team, and had been lucky enough to meet my heroes in person. I am forever grateful for that season, and continue to maintain a close relationship with the team. I had spent every summer in China since I was 8 setting up summer camps on trampoline and dry slope for kids and adults, ranging from 7 to 47 years old, so I knew the industry was tiny. I felt like I knew everyone,” she added.
“Skiing for Team China meant the opportunity to uplift others through the universal culture of sport, and to introduce freeskiing to hundreds of millions of people who had never heard of it, especially with the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics around the corner.”
Gu’s statement concluded by acknowledging that certain people “don’t understand” her decision to compete for China over the U.S., while insisting the choice maximized the impact she would have.
“I can look back now, at 22, and tell 12 year old Eileen that there are now terrain parks full of little girls, who will never doubt their place in the sport. I can tell 15 year old me that there are now millions of girls who have started skiing since then, in China and worldwide,” Gu wrote.
“A lot of people won’t understand or believe that I made a decision to create the greatest amount of positive impact on the world stage that I could, at this age, given my interests and passions. Three golds and six medals later, I can confidently say was once a dream is now a reality.”
Gu has become a target for global criticism this Olympics for her decision to represent China while remaining silent on the country’s alleged human rights abuses.
In an interview with Time magazine, Gu was asked her thoughts on China’s alleged persecution of Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslim minorities in Xinjiang.
“I haven’t done the research. I don’t think it’s my business. I’m not going to make big claims on my social media,” Gu answered.
“I’m just more of a skeptic when it comes to data in general. … So, it’s not like I can read an article and be like, ‘Oh, well, this must be the truth.’ I need to have a ton of evidence. I need to maybe go to the place, maybe talk to 10 primary source people who are in a location and have experienced life there.
“Then I need to go see images. I need to listen to recordings. I need to think about how history affects it. Then I need to read books on how politics affects it. This is a lifelong search. It’s irresponsible to ask me to be the mouthpiece for any agenda.”
More controversy surrounding Gu erupted after The Wall Street Journal reported that Gu and another American-born athlete who now competes for China, were paid a combined $6.6 million by the Beijing Municipal Sports Bureau in 2025.
Gu is the highest-paid Winter Olympics athlete in the world, making an estimated $23 million in 2025 alone due to partnerships with Chinese companies, including the Bank of China and western companies.
Her alignment with China prompted criticism from many Americans this Olympics, including Vice President J.D. Vance.
“I certainly think that someone who grew up in the United States of America who benefited from our education system, from the freedoms and liberties that makes this country a great place, I would hope they want to compete with the United States of America,” Vance said in an interview on Fox News’ “The Story with Martha MacCallum.”
Later, when Gu was asked if she feels “like a bit of a punching bag for a certain strand of American politics at the moment,” she said she does.
“I do,” she said. “So many athletes compete for a different country. … People only have a problem with me doing it because they kind of lump China into this monolithic entity, and they just hate China. So, it’s not really about what they think it’s about.
“And, also, because I win. Like, if I wasn’t doing well, I think that they probably wouldn’t care as much, and that’s OK for me. People are entitled to their opinions.”
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Silver medalist Eileen Gu of China attends the awarding ceremony of the freestyle skiing women’s freeski big air event at the Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Livigno, Italy, Feb. 16, 2026. (Hongxiang/Xinhua via Getty Images)
Gu has claimed she was “physically assaulted” for the decision.
“The police were called. I’ve had death threats. I’ve had my dorm robbed,” Gu told The Athletic.
“I’ve gone through some things as a 22-year-old that I really think no one should ever have to endure, ever.”
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Sports
Iowa State discontinues women’s gymnastics program
AMES, Iowa — Iowa State is ending its women’s gymnastics program.
The decision, announced by athletic director Jamie Pollard on Tuesday, comes not long after the school canceled the remainder of its 2026 season because of what Pollard described as “unresolvable” issues between players, coaches and parents.
Pollard said the school will replace gymnastics with another women’s sport that “provides equal or additional participation opportunities” for female athletes.
The school will honor the scholarships of current or incoming gymnasts who opt to remain at the university, including making sure they will continue to have access to all departmental services available to Iowa State student-athletes. Pollard added that the athletic department will also help any gymnast who chooses to go into the transfer portal.
Members of the coaching staff, including head coach Ashley Miles Greig, will not have their contracts renewed.
Pollard called the move “the right decision for our athletics program and our student athletes,” citing a pattern of issues within the program over the past decade.
Women’s gymnastics underwent a “complete review” in 2018 because of various issues. In 2023, the university hired a Minnesota-based law firm to do an independent evaluation of the program, leading to sweeping changes that included implementing a new coaching staff.
When similar issues cropped up three years later, Iowa State initially opted to cancel the remainder of the season because Pollard said “the student-athletes felt the conflicts were so problematic” they could not continue.
A leadership council within the university spent weeks talking to various stakeholders around the program before recommending women’s gymnastics be discontinued.
“The student-athlete experience is at the core of what our department takes great pride in,” Pollard said. “Our continued inability by our department to provide our women’s gymnastics team members [a positive] experience … is disappointing and very concerning.”
Pollard said finances did not play a role in the decision, adding that whatever sport the Cyclones eventually add could be just as expensive, if not more expensive, to field.
Iowa State won four conference titles in women’s gymnastics, the last in 2006.
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