Florida Gators softball preseason favorites for SEC title in 2019

Special report on the Florida Gators softball team:

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Florida was announced as the 2019 Southeastern Conference preseason favorite Wednesday morning after votes from the 13 SEC head coaches were gathered and tallied by the league office.

The four-time defending SEC regular season champions and 2019 tournament champions received 10 first-place votes, while Georgia picked up two votes and Kentucky garnered one.

In 2018, the Gators recorded a 20-4 conference record on their way to capturing a league leading eighth regular season title and fourth overall tournament championship.

Florida begins its’ 2019 campaign at the USF Opening Weekend Invitational in Tampa against Illinois State (Feb. 8) at 4:45 p.m. with the first SEC series slated against Tennessee (March 8-10).

The Gators are also set to host conference opponents Arkansas (April 5-7), Alabama (April 19-20) and Mississippi State (May 3-5) in 2019.

The first home contest in the newly renovated Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium is an exhibition set for Tuesday, Feb. 12, at 6 p.m. against Team Japan.

Single game tickets are on sale now and can be purchased through the Gator Ticket Office.

 

Over the phone:  1-800-34-GATOR or (352)-375-4683

In person: At the Gator Ticket Office, located on the West side of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium from 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

The 2019 SEC Softball Tournament will take place May 8-11 at Davis Diamond in College Station, Texas.

The full 2019 schedule can be found HERE.

2019 SEC Softball Preseason Coaches’ Poll**

(First-Place Votes in Parentheses)

 

Place School Points
1. Florida (10) 142
2. Georgia (2) 130
3. Tennessee 108
4. South Carolina 105
5. Arkansas 97
6. LSU 85
7. Kentucky (1) 81
8. Alabama 80
9. Auburn 69
10. Mississippi State 40
11. Texas A&M 32
12. Ole Miss 30
13. Missouri 15

**Points for the poll were awarded on a 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12 basis. Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own team

Andrew Spivey
Andrew always knew he wanted to be involved with sports in some capacity. He began by coaching high school football for six years before deciding to pursue a career in journalism. While coaching, he was a part of two state semifinal teams in the state of Alabama. Given his past coaching experience, he figured covering recruiting would be a perfect fit. He began his career as an intern for Rivals.com, covering University of Florida football recruiting. After interning with Rivals for six months, he joined the Gator Country family as a recruiting analyst. Andrew enjoys spending his free time on the golf course and watching his beloved Atlanta Braves. Follow him on Twitter at @AndrewSpiveyGC.