The Alabama Crimson Tide softball team has started the 2026 season with a bang. Alabama has won its first nine games and is moving up in the latest top 25 college softball rankings this week.
The Crimson Tide opened their season with a 5-0 week at the annual Buzz Classic in Atlanta, where they defeated East Carolina, Villanova, and host Georgia Tech in back-to-back days
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At the recent Easton Bama Bash at Rhoads Stadium in Tuscaloosa, the Crimson Tide tossed three shutouts in four games. Alabama blanked Purdue on back-to-back days, 10-0 Friday and 8-0 Saturday, as well as swept two games against Liberty that included an 8-0 shutout.
Alabama has five shutouts and just as many run-rule victories in their first nine contests. The Tide have outscored opponents, 83-9. They’re hitting .394 as a team with and have reached base at a .494 clip.
Brooke Wells (.500/.645/1.136), Marlie Giles (.500/.593/.864) and Audrey Vandagriff (.444/.531/.815) lead Alabama at the plate. Wells and Vandagriff have three home runs apiece, as do junior Salen Hawkins, senior Alexis Pupillo and freshman Ana Roman. The Crimson Tide have hit 21 home runs total and are slugging .773.
In the circle, Alabama freshman Vic Moten is 5-0 with a 0.58 ERA in five starts. She has 30 strikeouts to nine walks in 24 innings while holding opponents to a .115 batting average. Crimson Tide pitching have a combined 1.06 ERA and 67 strikeouts to 14 walks in 53 innings.
Feb 13, 2026; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; Alabama pitcher Vic Moten delivers a pitch to the plate during the game with Purdue at Rhoads Stadium in the East Bama Bash, the home opening weekend tournament.
Where Alabama lands in new Top 25 college softball rankings
As a result of their 9-0 start, the Crimson Tide moved up two spots to No. 6 in this week’s Softball America Top 25 rankings. It’s Alabama’s highest ranking among any of the major outlets.
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The Crimson Tide return to the diamond this weekend at the Dugout Club Classic in Tallahassee hosted by Florida State, and it’s the Seminoles (8-2) who sit one spot ahead of Alabama in Softball America’s rankings at No. 5.
Softball America isn’t the only outlet that has coach Patrick Murphy’s team on the rise. The Crimson Tide moved up four spots and into the top 10 of the ESPN.com/USA Softball Collegiate Top 25 rankings. Alabama is No. 9 in those rankings, as well as in D1 Softball’s Top 25 update.
Alabama rose to No. 8 in this week’s NFCA/Gorout Division I Top 25 Coaches Poll, where they land one spot behind Arkansas and one spot ahead of UCLA.
The Tennessee Lady Vols (10-0) top all the national outlet rankings at No. 1.
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Alabama softball schedule: Who’s on tap for Crimson Tide?
Alabama faces Elon in the opener of the Dugout Club Classic in Tallahassee Friday. First pitch is 9 a.m. CT. The Crimson Tide then face host Florida State in back-to-back games; 4:30 p.m. CT Friday and 2 p.m. Saturday are the schedule first pitch times for Alabama-Florida State.
A rematch with Elon is scheduled to follow at 4:30 p.m. Saturday before Sunday’s finale against Dartmouth, scheduled for 9 a.m.
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This article originally appeared on Roll Tide Wire: Alabama softball rising fast in top 25 rankings after hot start
