Texas A\&M claims top seed over Oklahoma in softball tournament

 OKLAHOMA CITY — Texas A&M claimed the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Division I softball tournament on Sunday, edging past four-time defending champion Oklahoma and leading a dominant Southeastern Conference presence with seven SEC teams in the top eight.

In its debut SEC season, Oklahoma captured the regular-season title by one game over Texas A&M. The two programs shared the conference tournament crown after the championship game was canceled due to weather.

Joining them from the SEC are No. 3 Florida, a national semifinalist in 2024, and No. 4 Arkansas. Arkansas also hosts Oklahoma State, a program with five straight Women’s College World Series appearances, in its regional.

The WCWS will be held May 29–June 5 in Oklahoma City, featuring the final eight teams from the 64-team field.

Florida State, the ACC regular-season champion and 2018 national champion, is the highest non-SEC seed at No. 5. Texas, national runner-up in two of the past three seasons, is seeded sixth, followed by Tennessee at No. 7 and South Carolina at No. 8 — a surprise after being picked last in the SEC preseason poll.

UCLA, now in its first Big Ten season, hosts as the No. 9 seed. No. 10 LSU faces a challenge from Nebraska and standout pitcher Jordyn Bahl, the 2023 WCWS Most Outstanding Player.

Clemson, fresh off an ACC tournament title over Florida State, secured the No. 11 seed. Big 12 champion Texas Tech — led by NFCA Player of the Year NiJaree Canady — is seeded 12th, with Arizona at No. 13.

Duke, which made its first WCWS appearance last year, is No. 14 and will host a regional. Alabama (No. 15) and Big Ten regular-season champion Oregon (No. 16) round out the top seeds.