LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Following a 5-1 showing at the Tournament of Champions, Humboldt State returned to No. 1 in this week’s NFCA Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll. The Jacks (26-5) switched places with Angelo State, who dropped a pair of Lone Star Conference contests.
Humboldt State, which received five first-place votes and 382 points, is back after falling from the top position two weeks ago. The Jacks picked up wins over Hawai’i Pacific, Hawai’i Hilo, Azusa Pacific, Chaminade and Notre Dame de Namur.
The Rambelles (36-4), who garnered six first-place votes and 379 points, fell to No. 2 following two weeks in the No. 1 position. Angelo ran into a Tarleton State program who already has wins over St. Mary’s and West Texas A&M (2). The Rambelles were shut out by the TexAnns in the series-opening doubleheader (0-2, 0-4) before salvaging the final game of the series, 9-2.
Pfeiffer and Harding moved up to No. 3 and No. 4 with identical 33-3 records and received three and one first-place votes, respectively. The Falcons have won six straight and 17-of-18 after four wins in which they outscored their opposition, 29-4. The Bison are the hottest team in Division II, rattling off 25 straight heading into this week. Harding captured all four games in a hard-fought four-game Great American Conference sweep of Southeastern Oklahoma State, including a pair of extra inning affairs (2-1 in 8 in. / 4-3 in 12 inn.).
Saint Leo (one first-place vote) and St. Mary’s shared the No. 5 spot posting three and four wins, respectively. The Lions (31-7) swept a home Sunshine State Conference series from Barry, while the Rattlers (29-7) went 4-1 on the road, splitting at Texas Woman’s and sweeping a three-game Heartland series at Oklahoma Panhandle.
Southern Arkansas (31-5), Cal State Monterey Bay (29-4) and West Texas A&M (29-6) moved up, to the No. 7 through No. 9 positions with Southern (29-7) Indiana remaining at No. 10.
No. 22 West Chester jumps into the top-25 for the first time this season and is joined by No. 23 UAH and No. 25 Caldwell making their return to the rankings.
The NFCA Division II Top 25 Poll is voted on by 16 NCAA Division II head coaches with two representing each of the eight NCAA regions. Records reflect games played through Sunday, April 2.
2017 NFCA Division II Softball Coaches Poll
Week 8 | April 5, 2017
| Rank | Team | Points | 2017 Record | Prev. Ranking |
| 1 | Humboldt State (5) | 382 | 26-5 | 2 |
| 2 | Angelo State (6) | 379 | 36-4 | 1 |
| 3 | Pfeiffer (3) | 366 | 33-3 | 4 |
| 4 | Harding (1) | 344 | 33-3 | 6 |
| 5 | Saint Leo (1) | 334 | 31-7 | 5 |
| St. Mary's | 334 | 29-7 | 3 | |
| 7 | Southern Arkansas | 307 | 31-5 | 8 |
| 8 | Cal State Monterey Bay | 269 | 29-4 | 15 |
| 9 | West Texas A&M | 267 | 29-6 | t10 |
| 10 | Southern Indiana | 262 | 29-7 | t10 |
| 11 | Valdosta State | 212 | 28-10 | 9 |
| 12 | North Georgia | 204 | 33-9 | 17 |
| 13 | Chico State | 203 | 25-6 | 7 |
| 14 | Indianapolis | 184 | 28-8 | 14 |
| West Virginia Wesleyan | 184 | 23-5 | 12 | |
| 16 | Tampa | 153 | 23-6 | 16 |
| 17 | Armstrong State | 140 | 25-8 | 13 |
| 18 | Minnesota State | 139 | 28-4 | 21 |
| 19 | Colorado Mesa | 115 | 28-4 | 22 |
| 20 | California Baptist | 79 | 26-7 | 25 |
| 21 | Limestone | 65 | 35-7 | 24 |
| 22 | West Chester | 45 | 22-6 | RV |
| 23 | UAH | 38 | 27-10 | RV |
| 24 | Dixie State | 35 | 30-9 | 19 |
| 25 | Caldwell | 30 | 14-9 | RV |
Dropped Out: No. 18, Wayne State (Mich.) (23-7), No. 20 Lenoir-Rhyne (33-8), No. 23 Adelphi (16-11-1).
New to Poll: No. 22 West Chester, No. 23 UAH, No. 25 Caldwell.
Receiving Votes: Saginaw Valley State (26), Missouri Western (21), New Haven (19), Carson-Newman (17), Wayne State (Mich.) (12), Adelphi (9), West Florida (9), Southern New Hampshire (7), Central Oklahoma (5), Lenoir-Rhyne (3), Charleston (1), Cameron (1).
The NFCA Division II Top 25 Poll is voted on by 16 NCAA Division II head coaches with two representing each of the eight NCAA regions. Records reflect games played through Sunday, April 2.
