LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A third-straight state title has helped cement Lone Grove’s standing as the No. 1 team in the GameChanger/NFCA Summer-Fall High School Top 25 Coaches Poll for another week, the Association announced on Thursday afternoon.
The (41-0) Longhorns won three games this past week, including defeating No. 2 Blanchard, 4-1, in Monday’s Oklahoma Class 4A championship. Lone Grove rolled past McLoud, 16-0 in Friday’s quarterfinals, and then blitzed Broken Bow, 13-3 in Saturday’s semifinal.
This was Lone Grove’s seventh consecutive appearance in the title game, and fifth title over that span.
Meanwhile, Blanchard (36-1) lost the battle of unbeaten Oklahoma powerhouses who were meeting in the state final for the second straight season. To get there, the Lions mauled Ft. Gibson, 17-0 in Friday’s quarters, and dispatched Plainview, 7-1 in Saturday’s semis.
No. 3 Windsor (25-0) — the only other undefeated team left in the rankings — has a first-round Colorado state 4A tournament game against Green Mountain on Friday after blanking both Thomas Jefferson and Widefield last Friday by a combined 28-0 margin.
Fifth-ranked Grain Valley (29-1) had its perfect season come to a crashing halt with a 2-0 loss to previously-ranked Blue Springs South in Monday’s Missouri Class 5, District 7 final, while No. 9 Chillicothe (29-3) fell to Centralia, 2-0 in the Class 3, District 4 championship.
No. 15 Millard North (34-4) defeated Elkhorn South 4-1 on Monday to capture Nebraska’s state Class A title, while Gretna (26-5) surged four spots this week to No. 20 after beating three ranked teams — Hastings, Grand Island Northwest and Gretna East — en route to the Class B state crown.
State rankings submitted by the NFCA High School Steering Committee are used to compile the GameChanger/NFCA Summer-Fall High School Top 25 Coaches Poll. Teams are chosen based on performance, roster quality and strength of schedule. Five states — Colorado, Georgia, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Missouri — play a fall fastpitch schedule, while Iowa recently completed its summer season.
GameChanger/NFCA Summer-Fall High School Top 25 Coaches Poll – Oct. 22, 2026
|
Rank |
Team |
2026 Record |
Previous |
|
1 |
41-0 |
1 |
|
|
2 |
36-1 |
2 |
|
|
3 |
25-0 |
3 |
|
|
4 |
36-1 |
4 |
|
|
5 |
29-1 |
5 |
|
|
6 |
38-2 |
6 |
|
|
7 |
30-3 |
7 |
|
|
8 |
22-3 |
8 |
|
|
9 |
26-3 |
10 |
|
|
10 |
22-3 |
12 |
|
|
11 |
26-2 |
13 |
|
|
12 |
21-3 |
14 |
|
|
13 |
29-3 |
9 |
|
|
14 |
34-4 |
15 |
|
|
15 |
40-4 |
16 |
|
|
16 |
37-4 |
17 |
|
|
17 |
36-4 |
18 |
|
|
18 |
28-4 |
19 |
|
|
19 |
21-5 |
11 |
|
|
20 |
26-5 |
24 |
|
|
21 |
28-6 |
20 |
|
|
22 |
29-6 |
21 |
|
|
23 |
19-6 |
T25 |
|
|
24 |
23-4 |
23 |
|
|
T25 |
29-6 |
22 |
|
|
T25 |
24-5 |
T25 |
Dropped out: None.
NFCA High School Steering Committee
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