RUSTON - Louisiana Tech is one of eight Conference USA softball programs ranked in the top 100 of the NCAA's most recent RPI released Monday as the Lady Techsters sit in 89th out of 295 Division I teams.

Head coach Mark Montgomery's team is 19-8 on the season, including a 4-2 mark in league play following this weekend's three-game sweep over Southern Mississippi.

The Lady Techsters join Western Kentucky (33), Florida Atlantic (37), UAB (44), Marshall (52), UTSA (72), North Texas (93) and Charlotte (100) in the top 100. The league almost had a ninth team in the top 100 as FIU came in at 109.

With eight teams ranked in the top 100, Conference USA trails only the SEC (13) and PAC-12 (9) and is tied with the ACC and the Big Ten. It's ahead of conferences such as the Big 12 (5) and Mountain West (4).

The Lady Techsters - who host Charlotte in a three-game series this weekend in Ruston - has come close to pulling off some major upsets this season. Tech led the nation's No. 1 ranked team (RPI #2) LSU 5-3 in the bottom of the seventh in Baton Rouge in mid-February before falling 7-5. Tech also has close losses to #27 Mississippi State (6-4), #36 SIUE (6-4) and #37 Florida Atlantic (5-4).