The first week of SEC play was absolutely bonkers, which results in a lot of movement with this week’s softball power rankings. LSU, Tennessee, Mississippi State, Ole Miss and Auburn all moved up while Alabama, Florida, Missouri and Georgia each slipped.

13. Texas A&M (16-8, 0-3)

The Aggies dropped all 3 contests at No. 17 Auburn by scores of 5-4, 4-3 and 8-5. Senior Haley Lee hit a pair of home runs on Sunday, including her first grand slam of the season. Sophomore Rylen Wiggins hit her team-leading 6th homer of the year and sophomore pitcher Grace Uribe gave the Aggies a chance to win in both appearances. She pitched 9 innings, surrendered 8 earned runs on 8 hits, struck out 3 and walked 6. Next up for the Aggies is a midweek against Sam Houston and weekend series with No. 5 Florida.

12. South Carolina (16-8, 1-2)

South Carolina bounced back with a 7-3 win after dropping the first 2 games of the series to Georgia 8-7 and 13-4. The Gamecocks’ No. 3-7 hitters had 9 of the team’s 10 hits in the finale, including Katie Prebble, who hit her 10th home run of the year. Bailey Betenbaugh earned the win, allowing 3 runs on 5 hits. South Carolina hosts College of Charleston on Thursday before making the trip to No. 17 Auburn.

11. Georgia (22-4, 2-1)

No. 21 Georgia won the weekend series against South Carolina with 2 wins, including 1 via mercy rule. The Bulldogs scattered 7 hits and drew 10 walks in the first game. Junior Sara Mosely and senior Lacey Fincher led the team in hits with 5 each, and sophomore Sydney Chambley drove in 5 runs. The Bulldogs began a 10-game homestand on Tuesday against Georgia Tech before hosting Dartmouth, Mercer and Illinois in the UGA Classic.

10. Mississippi State (16-10, 1-2)

Graduate student Annie Willis was named SEC Co-Pitcher of the Week  after throwing 8 scoreless innings on the road at No. 4 Florida over the weekend. Willis pitched MSU to its first win over a top-5 team since 2019 with a complete-game, 9-strikeout shutout. The Bulldogs’ 1-0 win was sandwiched between 8-4 and 3-0 losses. This weekend, they host Ole Miss and welcome the Rebels to SEC play.

9. Ole Miss (21-4, 0-0)

The Rebels are tied for the program’s best start through the first 25 games. The last time this happened, the 2017 team won the SEC Tournament. Senior Tate Whitley has locked up her spot at the top of the lineup and leads the team (6th in the nation) with a .506 batting average. She has 41 hits, which is tops in the country. She is off to a career-best start and is looking to fly by her previous season-high of 44 hits in 54 games last season. The Rebels head to Starkville for a 3-game series at Mississippi State to open conference play.

8. Mizzou (16-6, 0-2)

It was not a fun weekend for the No. 16 Missouri Tigers. It started with snow that forced some rescheduling and then the Tigers were run-ruled 14-3 to begin their Sunday doubleheader against No. 14 Tennessee. They dropped the next game 5-4. Freshman Kara Daly became the first Tiger to homer in 5 consecutive games with a solo bomb in Game 1. Mizzou puts the weekend in the rearview and heads to Illinois for a doubleheader on Wednesday before hosting No. 9 Northwestern, Stanford and Ball State at the Mizzou Classic.

7. Auburn (24-1, 3-0)

The No. 17 Auburn Tigers clinched their first SEC series sweep since 2019 over the weekend. Auburn has won 16 in a row and is 18-0 at home this season. Freshmen Jessie Blaine was 6-for-7, Bri Ellis hit her team-leading 7th homer and Nelia Peralta collected her 23rd RBI. The Tigers continue their homestand on Saturday with a 3-game series against South Carolina.

6. Florida (23-2, 2-1)

Despite being ranked No. 5 in the country, Florida drops in our power rankings this week after a tough series against Mississippi State. The Gators outscored the Bulldogs 11-5, including a come-from-behind 8-4 victory to start the series. Senior Cheyenne Lindsay was 6-for-10 and classmate Elizabeth Hightower pitched her 10th career shutout, first this season. With the win on Monday night, the Gators have won 10 consecutive SEC regular-season series dating to 2020. Next up is a game at Stetson and a trip to College Station to play Texas A&M.

5. Kentucky (19-2, 0-0)

The No. 8 Kentucky Wildcats are holding steady this week after a powerful showing at the 2022 Bluegrass Classic. UK beat Ohio 16-9, Buffalo 7-0 and Valparaiso 10-2 en route to a weekend sweep. Miranda Stoddard had quite the weekend in the circle and at the plate. She was 5-for-9 with a home run, 3 runs scored and 6 RBIs. In the circle, she pitched a 2-hit, 7-strikeout, complete-game shutout against Buffalo. The Wildcats travel for a midweek at Miami (Ohio) on Wednesday before heading to Tuscaloosa for a conference series with No. 4 Alabama.

4. Alabama (22-2, 1-2)

It was a rough weekend for the No. 4 Crimson Tide as they appeared mortal for the first time this season. Alabama dropped the first 2 of 3 to LSU by scores of 13-6 and 5-1 before salvaging a 2-1 win on Sunday in Baton Rouge.

Ace Montana Fouts lasted just 2 2/3 innings in Game 1. Fouts didn’t take the loss, but she walked 6 batters, gave up 5 hits and allowed 5 earned runs. She bounced back in Game 3, however, pitching a complete-game 3-hitter and striking out 10 as she improved to 11-0.

Jenna Johnson was the brightest spot in the Alabama lineup. She was 5-for-8 with 2 homers, 2 runs scored, a stolen bases and 2 walks. Alabama should be careful heading into its midweek No. 3 Florida State on Wednesday. If they don’t find the offense soon, it could be devastating when they face No. 8 Kentucky this weekend.

3. Arkansas (17-4, 0-0)

No. 8 Arkansas swept the week against Liberty, JMU and Maryland. Sophomore Hannah Gammill and senior Mary Haff were named SEC Player and Co-Pitcher of the Week after outstanding performances over the weekend. Gammill was 6-for-6 with 8 runs, 7 RBIs, 3 home runs and a double. Haff pitched the program’s first solo, 7-inning perfect game against Maryland with 14 strikeouts. Heading into SEC play, Haff has retired 27 straight. The Razorbacks begin SEC play at No. 14 Tennessee on Friday.

2. LSU (20-7, 2-1)

Who had LSU winning the series against Alabama on their bingo card? The No. 19 Tigers showed up and showed out with a series win against No. 4 Alabama. Junior Georgia Clark led the Tigers with 4 hits, 3 home runs and 8 RBIs in the 2 wins while freshman pitcher Raelin Chaffin improved to 3-0 this season in a complete-game effort that was one batter shy of a perfect game. It was the first 3-game series win against the Tide since 2015. LSU travels to No. 25 Texas for 3-game series on Friday.

1. Tennessee (19-6, 2-0)

The No. 14 Lady Vols made the jump to the top spot in the power rankings this weekend a huge sweep of Mizzou on the road. Graduate transfer Erin Edmoundson picked up her 10th and 11th wins of the season. Sophomore Zaida Puni was 4-for-6 with 2 home runs and 4 RBIs. The Lady Vols host No. 8 Arkansas this weekend.