Tampa and Saint Leo Picked as 2026 Softball Favorites
The Spartans look to extend their streak with a fifth straight title, while the Lions chase their first conference crown since 2017.
A.J. Vazquez, Communications Contractor
MELBOURNE, FLORIDA - The University of Tampa and Saint Leo University were elected as the Sunshine State Conference’s 2026 Softball favorites. The Spartans and Lions both received 90 points in a poll voted on by the league’s 11 head coaches.
Tampa enters the 2026 season atop the preseason poll for the fifth consecutive year, while Saint Leo joins them in pursuit of its first Sunshine State Conference championship since 2017. The Spartans, who finished as the 2025 national runner-up, have won four straight conference titles and will look to extend that streak to five.
Nova Southeastern University received 81 points and is projected to finish third. Just four points behind the Sharks is Barry University who earned 77 points, earning a fourth-place projection. Eckerd College leads the middle of the pack in fifth with 64 points, while Rollins College sits sixth with 57 points. Florida Tech is projected seventh with 46 points.
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University is projected to finish in eighth (43), followed by Lynn University (24), Palm Beach Atlantic University (22), and Florida Southern College (11).
2026 SOFTBALL SCHEDULE
Opening weekend is set for January 30 through February 1 and will feature all 11 Sunshine State Conference Softball teams in action. The regular-season champions will earn an automatic qualification to the NCAA Regional.
Below are the full results of the 2026 Sunshine State Conference preseason coaches' poll. Coaches are not allowed to vote for their teams (points: 9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1, first-place votes in parentheses).
Sunshine State Conference Preseason Softball Poll
|
Projected Place
|
Team
|
Total (First-Place Votes)
|
|
T1
|
Tampa
|
90 (5)
|
|
T1
|
Saint Leo
|
90 (4)
|
|
3
|
Nova Southeastern
|
81 (1)
|
|
4
|
Barry
|
77 (1)
|
|
5
|
Eckerd
|
64
|
|
6
|
Rollins
|
57
|
|
7
|
Florida Tech
|
46
|
|
8
|
Embry-Riddle
|
43
|
|
9
|
Lynn
|
24
|
|
10
|
Palm Beach Atlantic
|
22
|
|
11
|
Florida Southern
|
11
|
Previous Sunshine State Conference Softball Polls
|
Year
|
Predicted Winner
|
Actual Finish
|
Actual Winner
|
Predicted Finish
|
|
2025
|
Tampa
|
1st
|
Tampa
|
1st
|
|
2024
|
Tampa
|
1st
|
Tampa
|
1st
|
|
2023
|
Tampa
|
1st
|
Tampa
|
1st
|
|
2022
|
Tampa
|
1st
|
Nova Southeastern / Tampa
|
4th / 1st
|
|
2021
|
Rollins
|
1st
|
Rollins
|
1st
|
|
2020
|
Rollins
|
N/A
|
Not Awarded Due to COVID-19
|
N/A
|
|
2019
|
Saint Leo
|
4th
|
Florida Tech
|
5th
|
|
2018
|
Saint Leo
|
4th
|
Palm Beach Atlantic
|
3rd
|