In less than a month, the NCAA college softball season will be underway, and Oklahoma will begin its quest for an unprecedented fourth consecutive national championship.

The Sooners are entering the 2024 campaign on an NCAA-record 53-game winning streak and as the No. 1 team in the country, according to the 2024 D1Softball preseason rankings released on Jan. 16. 

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Oklahoma lost to Baylor early last season but remained untouched the rest of the way, closing the year with a sweep of Florida State to win the 2023 Women’s College World Series. OU finished the season with a 61-1 record and joined UCLA (1988-1990) as the only two teams to win three straight national titles. 

A pair of three-time first-team All-Americans—infielder Tiare Jennings and outfielder Jayda Coleman—will lead Oklahoma into action in 2024, and while the Sooners will be without All-American pitcher Jordy Bahl and her 44 career wins at OU (she transferred to Nebraska), they’ve made some key pickups to help toward their title defense. 

Among them, is former Oklahoma State ace Kelly Maxwell (LHP), who was the 2022 Big 12 Co-Pitcher of the Year.

Behind Oklahoma in the first five spots of the year’s initial rankings are Stanford, Tennessee, Florida State and Texas, respectively. 

The SEC landed nine schools in the 25-team rankings, followed by the Pac-12 (five), Big 12 (four), ACC (three) and Big Ten (two).

Where Will The Oklahoma Sooners Begin Their 2024 Season?

The three-time defending champion Oklahoma Sooners will kick off their season at the prestigious Puerto Vallarta College Challenge in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. 

The event will feature 15 teams split into two sessions.

The first session will take place Feb. 8-11 and include Oklahoma, Utah Valley, Duke, Washington, Long Beach State, Iowa State and Nebraska. 

Session 2 will be Feb. 14-18 and will feature Clemson, Wichita State, UC Davis, UC San Diego, Auburn, Utah, South Carolina and Mississippi State. 

Clemson (No. 7), Duke (No. 8), Washington (No. 10), Nebraska (No. 13), Auburn (No. 19) and South Carolina (No. 22) all joined Oklahoma in the Jan. 16 rankings. 

2024 College Softball Rankings

Here is the D1Softball Preseason Top 25 Poll, with last season’s overall records included.

How To Watch The 2024 Puerto Vallarta College Challenge

Watch the 2024 Puerto Vallarta College Challenge on FloSoftball and the FloSports app.

FloSoftball will be streaming several other NCAA Division I college softball tournaments, including the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic, THE Spring Games and the Mark Campbell Collegiate Invitational.

When Is The 2024 NCAA Women’s College World Series?

In 2024, the final eight teams in Division I softball will converge on Oklahoma City from May 30-June 7, though the final day may not be necessary.

How To Watch THE Springs Games Opening Weekend And THE Spring Games

Subscribe to FloSoftball and the FloSports app to watch the 2024 edition of THE Spring Games, the world’s largest college softball event. 

Each spring, THE Spring Games welcomes hundreds of teams across the Division I, Division II, Division III and NAIA/junior college ranks to sunny Florida for top-tier competition and an unforgettable experience. 

FloSoftball Archived Footage

Video footage from past seasons is archived and stored in a video library for FloSoftball subscribers to watch for the duration of their subscriptions.

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