AUBURN, Ala. – With a win over a ranked opponent for the second straight week, Auburn softball (19-8, 1-5 SEC) held on to its ranking in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 for the fifth straight week.
Auburn held steady at No. 25 after a hard-fought weekend in Columbia, Mo. The Tigers knocked off No. 18 Missouri behind a 3-0 shutout performance from freshman pitcher Shelby Lowe to record their first win in Southeastern Conference play. It was Auburn's first victory in Columbia since 2015.
Oklahoma (25-0) held on to the top spot in the poll, receiving 19 of a possible 20 first-place votes. Rounding out the top five were No. 2 UCLA (19-1), No. 3 Oregon (23-1), No. 4 Alabama (26-3) and No. 5 Florida (24-3). Alabama received one first-place vote in this week's poll.
Auburn will face a top-25 opponent for the fourth consecutive week as Arkansas will bring a No. 11 ranking to the Plains. Other SEC teams ranked this week include No. 7 Kentucky (24-4), No. 15 LSU (18-11), No. 18 Tennessee (23-5), No. 20 Missouri (24-7), No. 23 Georgia (22-5) and new to the polls No. 24 Texas A&M (23-5). Ten of the 13 SEC program were ranked heading into the seventh week of the season.
In the latest NCAA RPI rankings, Auburn dropped two spots to No. 9. Auburn is one of five SEC schools ranked in the top 10 of the RPI.
Softball Rankings: Week 7
Tyler King at the plate during Missouri game.