Sooners move to No. 1 in ESPN/USA Softball Top 25 poll

The Oklahoma Sooners (14-0) move up one spot to take the top position in the Week 3 ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 Poll after an undefeated weekend at home, which included run-rule victories over Tulsa and Abilene Christian.

Texas (15-1) drops to No. 2 following a 4-1 performance in Arizona, where they suffered their first loss of the season to then-No. 20 Stanford. The Longhorns secured four wins, including a victory over then-No. 11 Arizona and additional run-rule wins against Colorado State and UC-Davis.

Monday's games

Kasidi Pickering's walk-off three-run home run led No. 2 Oklahoma (14-0) to an 8-5 win over Bowling Green (2-7) in game one, while Cydney Sanders drove in three of her seven RBIs in a 9-1 victory over Abilene Christian (3-11) on Feb. 24. The Sooners swept the home-opening tournament, with both Pickering and Sanders recording seven RBIs. The Oklahoma pitching staff posted a 1.40 ERA, with Sam Landry earning a 2-0 record and 15 strikeouts in 7.2 innings.

In game one, Bowling Green took a 3-0 lead in the first, but OU responded with a two-out grand slam from Sanders in the second to lead 4-3. The Falcons tied it at 4-4 in the fourth before taking a 5-4 lead. OU answered in the sixth, tying it at 5-5 with a sac fly by Ella Parker. After a scoreless eighth from Landry, OU walked off in the bottom half. With two outs, Parker singled, Sanders reached on an error, and Pickering hit a walk-off three-run home run to right center.

In game two, Abilene Christian led 1-0 after the first inning. But OU broke open the game with four two-out runs in the third, including a two-run homer by Sanders. Sanders added another RBI in the fourth to make it 5-1. The Sooners continued to extend their lead with more runs in the fifth, including a double by Nelly McEnroe-Marinas, an RBI single from Maya Bland, and a two-RBI double from Parker.

Rest of the Top 25

Florida (18-1) holds steady at No. 3 after a flawless 5-0 performance at the Sun Devil Classic, outscoring opponents 62-9 and earning three run-rule victories. The UCLA Bruins (14-2) remain at No. 4 after a 5-1 week, with five ranked wins at the Mary Nutter Classic, despite a tough loss to then-No. 14 Duke in their final matchup of the weekend.

Texas A&M (15-1) returns to the Top 5 following an undefeated weekend in Tallahassee, Fla., highlighted by back-to-back wins over then-No. 8 Florida State.

The Sooners also were able to take over the top spot in the D1 Softball Poll as well.