South Carolina softball's updated rankings following strong stretch of play

South Carolina softball has been playing better of late. The Gamecocks have won two SEC series in a row (including against top-10 Texas A&M) and beat rivals Clemson and North Carolina on the road during mid-week contests.

Now, Ashley Chastain Woodard’s team holds a 29-22 overall record and a 7-14 mark in conference play.

Having teetered on the edge of the top-25 polls the past few weeks, South Carolina is featured in multiple rankings for the first time in several weeks. Below is a look at Ashley Chastain Woodard’s team’s updated placement in the four major rankings from Softball America, D1Softball, ESPN.com/USA Softball, and NFCA/GoRout.

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Three of the major polls placed the Gamecocks in their weekly top 25 rankings.

This week, Softball America, D1Softball, and ESPN.com/USA Softball all included South Carolina. The NFCA/GoRout Coaches Poll was the only one of the four major rankings to exclude USC, but the Gamecocks did earn some votes.

Softball America moved the South Carolina softball team from its “also receiving votes” portion of the poll to No. 21. The Gamecocks are 11th in the SEC.

D1Softball’s top 25 saw Carolina sitting at the No. 23 spot. Last week, the Gamecocks earned votes but not a place in the top 25. USC is No. 11 among all Southeastern Conference teams.

The combined ESPN.com and USA Softball poll was the lone top-25 ranking to include South Carolina last week. This week, the Gamecocks shifted up three spots from No. 24 to No. 21. Again, USC is 11th in the conference.

South Carolina softball fell out of the NFCA/GoRout top 25 several weeks ago and has not resurfaced. Chastain Woodard’s group did pick up some votes but not enough to join the other 10 SEC squads in the ranking.

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This week, South Carolina softball (29-22, 7-14) will wrap up the regular season. First, on Tuesday, the Gamecocks will face off against the SC State Bulldogs (20-18, 12-10 in MEAC) in Columbia. Then, in a Thursday-through-Saturday slate, USC will play a series against the Alabama Crimson Tide (44-6, 16-5) in Tuscaloosa.

The midweek, in-state contest will begin at 6 p.m. on Tuesday night. Beckham Field will host the game, and admission is free. Because the matchup was recently added to the schedule, it will not be available on television or via streaming.

South Carolina will be on the road for three games against Alabama. None of the series will be on traditional television but will stream on SEC Network+. Though Tuscaloosa is in Central Time, all game times will be in Eastern.

First, the Gamecocks and Crimson Tide will open their series on Thursday at 7 p.m. Friday’s game two will also begin at 7 p.m. The series finale on Saturday will begin at 2 p.m.

Alabama ranks fourth nationally in both the NFCA/Go Rout Coaches Poll and D1Softball’s top 25. The Crimson Tide are third, according to Softball America and ESPN.com/USA Softball. They also earned a first-place vote in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll.

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