Arizona softball voted to finish 4th in Pac-12

Arizona softball may be a top-10 team nationally, but the Wildcats aren’t even projected to be among the leaders of the Pac-12.

The reigning conference champions placed fourth in the 2018 Pac-12 Softball Coaches Poll, behind Oregon, UCLA, and Washington.

The Ducks received seven first place votes while the Bruins earned two.

Here is the full poll:

1. Oregon (7)
2. UCLA (2)
3. Washington
4. Arizona
5. Utah
6. Arizona State
7. California
8. Oregon State
9. Stanford

The Pac-12 poll closely mirrors the USA Today/NFCA preseason poll.

Oregon, at No. 3, is the highest nationally ranked Pac-12 team. No. 4 Washington, No. 5 UCLA, and No. 7 Arizona are all in the Top 10, while No. 15 Utah and No. 23 ASU give the conference six top-25 teams.

That’s the most of any conference aside from the SEC.

Arizona will begin its season this Friday when it takes part in the Kajikawa Classic in Tempe. The Wildcats face Northwestern at 11:30 a.m. MST and No. 24 Oklahoma State at 5 p.m. MST.

Both games will be televised on the Pac-12 Network.