The Back Alley Archives

DURHAM, N.C.—Arizona State, which swept Pacific-10 Conference foe Southern California, kept its spot atop the Baseball America Top 25 rankings, while Miami leapfrogged Missouri and North Carolina to reach the No. 2 position.

The Sun Devils continued their strong start by scoring 34 runs and collecting 42 hits over the weekend, improving their record to a staggering 25-1. Miami posted a 4-0 week to improve to 21-2 (9-1 in the ACC). Missouri lost a weekend series for the first time this season, on the road against Texas Tech, which caused the Tigers to drop to No. 4.

Nebraska was one of the biggest movers of the week. The Cornhuskers went on the road and won their series against then-No. 13 Texas, improving their record to 21-4 (7-1 in the Big 12). Formerly top-ranked Arizona continued to struggle, as the Wildcats dropped two midweek games at Oklahoma State and lost their weekend series at home to No. 23 UCLA. The Wildcats plummeted from No. 6 to No. 18.

UNC Wilmington and Cal State Fullerton broke into the rankings this week. The red-hot Seahawks, owners of a 20-game winning streak, swept their CAA series on the road against Virginia Commonwealth to make their first appearance in the rankings at No. 20. Cal State Fullerton won a midweek game on the road against then-No. 14 San Diego and its weekend series against UC Riverside to move back into the rankings at No. 25.

The staff of Baseball America determines the Top 25 rankings. Records indicated are through games of March 30 and do not include ties.

1. Arizona State 25-1 3-0 1
2. Miami 21-2 4-0 4
3. North Carolina 21-5 3-1 3
4. Missouri 20-5 2-3 2
5. UC Irvine 19-3 3-1 7
6. Florida State 23-3 4-1 8
7. California 18-5 3-1 11
8. Vanderbilt 18-6 4-0 9
9. South Carolina 18-7 3-2 10
10. Long Beach State 17-7 1-4 5
11. Nebraska 21-4 4-1 19
12. Wichita State 20-3 6-0 16
13. Stanford 12-7 3-2 17
14. Virginia 23-5 4-1 21
15. Rice 19-9 2-3 12
16. Texas 18-8 2-2 13
17. San Diego 19-10 3-3 14
18. Arizona 14-9 1-4 6
19. Florida 20-6 3-2 24
20. UNC Wilmington 21-4 4-0 NR
21. Kentucky 22-4 2-2 18
22. Michigan 14-6 5-0 25
23. UCLA 12-10 2-2 23
24. Coastal Carolina 21-6 3-2 22
25. Cal State Fullerton 15-9 3-1 NR

For the seventh consecutive week, Arizona State tops the Rivals.com Top 25 Rankings. Meanwhile, Long Beach State and Missouri each dropped four spots after series losses to California and Texas Tech, respectively.

Ole Miss (19) and Baylor (23) dropped out of this week's rankings, while Oregon State moved in at No. 23 and Southern Miss entered at No. 25.

Here are the conference breakdowns: Pac-10 (6), SEC (4), ACC (4), Big 12 (3), Big West (3), WCC (2), Missouri Valley (1), Conference USA (2).

1. ARIZONA STATE (25-1) — PR: 1
The Sun Devils had another successful week that included a series sweep over USC.
2. MIAMI (21-2) — PR: 2
After sweeping Bethune-Cookman in midweek action, the 'Canes took care of Duke.
3. NORTH CAROLINA (21-5) — PR: 5
After beating Davidson and Gardner-Webb, the Tar Heels split with rival N.C. State.
4. FLORIDA STATE (23-3) — PR: 6
The Seminoles swept Stetson in midweek action and took a series from Wake Forest.
5. UC IRVINE (19-3) — PR: 7
The gritty Eaters hit the road this past weekend and took a series from Cal Poly.
6. CALIFORNIA (18-5) — PR: 15
After dropping a midweek game to Santa Clara, Cal did a clean sweep of Long Beach State.
7. LONG BEACH STATE (17-7) — PR: 3
With a midweek loss to Pepperdine and a series loss to Cal, The Beach is facing adversity.
8. MISSOURI (20-5) — PR: 4
After splitting midweek games with Minnesota, they dropped a series at Texas Tech.
9. VANDERBILT (18-6) — PR: 9
The 'Dores had a perfect week on the diamond that included a series win over Arkansas.
10. SOUTH CAROLINA (18-7) — PR: 10
They didn't have a great midweek, but took care of Kentucky over the weekend.
11. PEPPERDINE (17-7) — PR: 13
Weather was not kind to the Waves, but they did beat Long Beach State and Gonzaga.
12. NEBRASKA (21-4) — PR: 16
After sweeping Northern Colorado in midweek action, they beat Texas on the road.
13. STANFORD (12-7) — PR: 14
They dropped a midweek game to Sacramento State, but took care of Washington State.
14. FLORIDA (20-6) — PR: 18
After splitting midweek games with Jacksonville, they took care of LSU at home.
15. RICE (19-9) — PR: 11
The Owls dropped a midweek game to rival Houston and a series to Southern Miss.
16. TEXAS (18-8) — PR: 12
The Longhorns beat Oral Roberts, but dropped a home series to Nebraska.
17. ARIZONA (14-9) — PR: 8
The Wildcats had another disappointing week on the diamond, but did beat UCLA on Sunday.
18. SAN DIEGO (19-10) — PR: 17
They had a less than stellar week, losing games to Cal State Fullerton and Santa Clara.
19. CAL STATE FULLERTON (15-9) — PR: 21
After beating San Diego, the Titans took two of three from UC Riverside at home.
20. UCLA (12-10) — PR: 22
After a disappointing skid, the Bruins bounced back with a series win over Arizona.
21. WICHITA STATE (20-3) — PR: 24
The Shockers are in the middle of an impressive 17-game winning streak.
22. VIRGINIA (23-5) — PR: 25
The Cavaliers swept Virginia Tech over the weekend, but hope to soon make a statement.
23. OREGON STATE (13-8) — PR: NR
After sweeping BYU in a midweek series, the Beavers took care of Washington.
24. KENTUCKY (22-4) — PR: 20
The Wildcats beat Xavier in midweek action, but dropped a series to South Carolina.
25. SOUTHERN MISS (17-8) — PR: NR
With a midweek win over Ole Miss and a series win at Rice, the Eagles are in business.