IRVING, Texas – After doubling as both the regular-season and tournament champion in the American Athletic Conference last season, Wichita State was selected as the favorite in the 2022 American Softball Preseason Coaches’ Poll that was released on Tuesday.
Wichita State claimed four first-place votes and earned 33 voting points in the preseason rankings, as voted on by the conference’s seven head coaches. The Shockers won their first American softball championships a season ago, taking the conference tournament title as the top seed (18-5-1, .771 conference record) following a 7-4 win over UCF at Tulsa’s Collins Family Softball Complex on May 15, 2021. Wichita State reached the regional final of the 2021 NCAA Norman (Okla.) Regional and closed the season with a 41-13-1 (.755) overall record.
South Florida checked in second in the preseason poll with 31 points and one first-place vote after finishing the 2021 campaign as the runner-up in The American with a 16-7 (.696) conference record (31-19, .620 overall). The Bulls compiled a 2-2 record and reached the regional final of the 2021 NCAA Gainesville (Fla.) Regional. UCF claimed the final two first-place votes in the preseason rankings to check in third with 29 points. The Knights finished third in the conference last season with a 16-7-1 (.688) league mark, capping the year in the regional final of the 2021 NCAA Tallahassee (Fla.) Regional with a 41-19-1 (.680) record for the year.
Houston (8-16 conference record in 2021) was fourth in the 2022 preseason rankings with 19 voting points, followed by three-time American tournament champion Tulsa (15-8 conference record in 2021) in fifth with 18 voting points. Memphis (2-22 conference record in 2021) and East Carolina (7-17 conference record in 2021) rounded out the preseason poll in sixth and seventh place, respectively.
2022 American Athletic Conference Preseason Softball Coaches’ Poll
| Team (First-Place Votes) |
Pts. |
| 1. Wichita State (4) |
33 |
| 2. South Florida (1) |
31 |
| 3. UCF (2) |
29 |
| 4. Houston |
19 |
| 5. Tulsa |
18 |
| 6. Memphis |
9 |
| 7. East Carolina |
8 |