This past weekend Florida Atlantic dedicated their field to longtime head coach Joan Joyce. The 21 time Hall of Famer passed in March 2022. Her brother and sister, Joey and Janis, were on hand and presented with a plaque with two tickets from the first game held at Joan Joyce Field. Joyce, one of the most legendary names in the sport, coached FAU for 28 seasons amassing a 1002–674–1 record.
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Alabama/LSU On Tap For RTS
RTS heads to T-Town this weekend for a big SEC matchup as No. 12 LSU (37-11, 10-8) visits No. 16 Alabama (34-15, 10-8). The Tigers and Crimson Tide get the series started on Friday at 6:00 pm CT. Check-in on Twitter @Rounding3rdSB and on all RTS Social Media platforms for live in-game action and updates throughout the weekend.
Lander Promotes Gibbs
Lander University is promoting assistant coach Maddie Gibbs to head coach. She is replacing current coach Glen Crawford who is stepping down at the end of the season to become Athletic Director at Columbia College. Gibbs was hired on the coaching staff for the Bearcats in the summer of 2020. She had spent the previous two seasons at her alma mater Reinhardt University where she had played for Crawford when he coached the program there.
Goins Promoted Permanently At Queens
Kella Goins has been named the permanent head coach at Queens University of Charlotte. Goins had been appointed interim head coach last month after the resignation of former coach Stacey Schramm. She has led the Royals to a 10-13 record since. Goins was named assistant coach in fall 2022 after completing a standout playing career at Lincoln Memorial in 2021. The newcomer to the coaching ranks takes on the task of leading the latest program to join the ranks of Division I.
OU Still No. 1
Untouchable Oklahoma (42-1) still tops this week’s D1 Softball Top 25 Poll.
| Rank | Team | Overall Record | Record Last Week | Previous Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oklahoma | 42-1 | 3-0 | 1 |
| 2 | UCLA | 43-4 | 4-0 | 2 |
| 3 | Tennessee | 37-5 | 3-0 | 3 |
| 4 | Florida State | 39-8 | 4-0 | 5 |
| 5 | Texas | 39-9-1 | 3-0 | 9 |
| 6 | Clemson | 44-5 | 4-0 | 6 |
| 7 | Georgia | 37-10 | 4-0 | 7 |
| 8 | Oklahoma State | 39-8 | 0-4 | 4 |
| 9 | Duke | 40-8 | 4-0 | 8 |
| 10 | Stanford | 34-10 | 3-1 | 10 |
| 11 | Washington | 33-10 | 2-1 | 12 |
| 12 | LSU | 37-11 | 3-1 | 14 |
| 13 | Arkansas | 34-13 | 3-1 | 11 |
| 14 | Baylor | 34-13 | 0-3 | 15 |
| 15 | Auburn | 35-14 | 3-1 | 20 |
| 16 | Alabama | 34-15 | 2-3 | 13 |
| 17 | Oregon | 31-11 | 3-0 | 19 |
| 18 | Utah | 29-10 | 1-2 | 17 |
| 19 | Northwestern | 30-10 | 2-1 | 16 |
| 20 | Wichita State | 40-8 | 4-0 | 22 |
| 21 | Florida | 32-13 | 1-2 | 18 |
| 22 | Texas A&M | 29-17 | 3-1 | 21 |
| 23 | Central Arkansas | 33-9 | 2-1 | 24 |
| 24 | Kentucky | 27-15-1 | 2-2 | 23 |
| 25 | Louisville | 32-14 | 4-0 | NR |
| Dropped Out | ||||
| South Carolina | 32-15 | 2-3 | 25 | |
RTS Heads For Top 25 SEC Matchup
RTS heads to Athens this weekend for a Top 25 SEC matchup as No. 25 South Carolina (32-12, 7-8) visits No. 7 Georgia (34-10, 12-5). The Gamecocks and Bulldogs get the series started on Friday at 6:30 pm EST. Check-in on Twitter @Rounding3rdSB and on all RTS Social Media platforms for live in-game action and updates throughout the weekend.
Oregon Tech Tops NAIA Poll
Oregon Tech (36-5) is ranked No. 1 in the latest NAIA Top 25 Poll. The Owls garnered 18 of 19 first-place votes. Our Lady of the Lake (38-4) comes in No. 2 with one vote.
| RANK | LAST WEEK | SCHOOL [1st Place Votes] | RECORD | FINAL POINTS |
| 1 | 1 | Oregon Tech [18] | 36-5 | 529 |
| 2 | 2 | Our Lady of the Lake (Texas) [1] | 38-4 | 512 |
| 3 | 3 | Cumberlands (Ky.) | 36-3 | 495 |
| 4 | 5 | Southern Oregon | 31-7 | 465 |
| 5 | 7 | Oklahoma City | 33-7 | 449 |
| 6 | 6 | Texas A&M Texarkana | 28-3 | 442 |
| 7 | 4 | Baker (Kan.) | 28-6 | 438 |
| 8 | 8 | College of Idaho | 37-6 | 401 |
| 9 | 9 | Science & Arts (Okla.) | 27-11 | 383 |
| 10 | 12 | Marian (Ind.) | 33-3 | 373 |
| 11 | 10 | Georgia Gwinnett | 32-9 | 370 |
| 12 | 13 | Northwestern (Iowa) | 37-2 | 356 |
| 13 | 11 | Middle Georgia State | 31-9 | 323 |
| 14 | 14 | Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) | 20-7 | 312 |
| 15 | 15 | Mobile (Ala.) | 28-11 | 278 |
| 16 | 17 | Ottawa (Kan.) | 33-6 | 273 |
| 17 | 18 | Central Methodist (Mo.) | 24-8 | 241 |
| 17 | 16 | Southeastern (Fla.) | 26-12 | 241 |
| 19 | 19 | William Carey (Miss.) | 33-9 | 224 |
| 20 | 22 | Indiana Wesleyan | 28-10 | 213 |
| 21 | 21 | Coastal Georgia | 31-8 | 187 |
| 22 | 24 | Hope International (Calif.) | 29-9 | 140 |
| 23 | 23 | Campbellsville (Ky.) | 25-11-1 | 125 |
| 24 | 25 | Eastern Oregon | 24-14 | 109 |
| 25 | 20 | Mount Vernon Nazarene (Ohio) | 23-10 | 95 |
Dropped from the Top 25: N/A
Others Receiving Votes: Indiana Tech 92, Reinhardt (Ga.) 83, Friends (Kan.) 56, Missouri Baptist 47, Midland (Neb.) 39, Mount Mercy (Iowa) 23, Truett McConnell (Ga.)19, Saint Xavier (Ill.) 15, Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) 12, Mid-America Christian (Okla.) 9, Bellevue (Neb.) 7, Oklahoma Wesleyan 7, Jessup (Calif.) 6, Madonna (Mich.) 4, Dordt (Iowa) 3.
Southeast Arkansas Hires Hendrix To Lead New Program
Belinda Hendrix has been hired as the first head coach for the new program at JUCO Southeast Arkansas College. Hendrix spent 17 seasons leading the program at Chipola College, where the program won three National Championships. She spent the 2022 season at East Tennessee State before being terminated last November after complaints of a “unhealthy team culture”. Hendrix husband, Jimmy Hendrix, will also be joining her staff at Southeast Arkansas after resigning from Arkansas State Mid-South after being hired to start that new program in February.
Two Surging Newcomers Join Top 25 Poll
Oklahoma (39-1) and UCLA (39-4) stay in the top spots in this week’s D1 Softball Top 25, while surging Central Arkansas (31-8) and South Carolina (30-12) enter for the first time.
| Rank | Team | Overall Record | Record Last Week | Previous Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oklahoma | 39-1 | 3-0 | 1 |
| 2 | UCLA | 39-4 | 3-0 | 2 |
| 3 | Tennessee | 34-5 | 4-0 | 7 |
| 4 | Oklahoma State | 39-4 | 4-1 | 3 |
| 5 | Florida State | 35-8 | 3-1 | 4 |
| 6 | Clemson | 40-5 | 3-1 | 8 |
| 7 | Georgia | 33-10 | 2-2 | 6 |
| 8 | Duke | 36-8 | 6-0 | 13 |
| 9 | Texas | 36-9-1 | 3-1 | 9 |
| 10 | Stanford | 31-9 | 0-3 | 5 |
| 11 | Arkansas | 31-12 | 3-1 | 12 |
| 12 | Washington | 31-9 | 2-1 | 10 |
| 13 | Alabama | 32-12 | 4-0 | 15 |
| 14 | LSU | 34-10 | 1-3 | 11 |
| 15 | Baylor | 34-10 | 4-1 | 16 |
| 16 | Northwestern | 28-9 | 4-0 | 18 |
| 17 | Utah | 28-8 | 4-0 | 22 |
| 18 | Florida | 31-11 | 3-1 | 23 |
| 19 | Oregon | 28-11 | 3-0 | 17 |
| 20 | Auburn | 32-13 | 3-1 | NR |
| 21 | Texas A&M | 26-16 | 2-3 | 14 |
| 22 | Wichita State | 36-8 | 2-1 | 21 |
| 23 | Kentucky | 25-13-1 | 1-3 | 19 |
| 24 | Central Arkansas | 31-8 | 4-0 | NR |
| 25 | South Carolina | 30-12 | 3-1 | NR |
| Dropped Out | ||||
| Virginia Tech | 32-12 | 1-3 | 20 | |
| Indiana | 31-15 | 1-4 | 24 | |
| Louisiana | 33-12 | 3-2 | 25 | |
Jax State Facility To Be Named For Coach McGinnis
On Sunday Jacksonville State honored their head coach Jana McGinnis for her 1,000th career victory with naming the field in which many of those wins came in honor of their leader. Jax State President Dr. Don Killingsworth announced as part of the festivities that the Gamecocks Facility would be dedicated as Jana McGinnis Field. McGinnis is in her 30th season leading JSU and holds a 1,009-568 career record. She became the 12th active coach in Division I with 1,000 career wins and just the 33rd coach in Division I history to reach the milestone.