LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Reigning national champion Trine kept winning to strengthen its hold on the No. 1 spot in the NFCA Division III Top 25 Coaches Poll.
The (12-1) Thunder have reeled off eight straight victories since suffering their lone loss of the season, 4-3 to nationally-ranked Christopher Newport in a matchup of the last two Division III titlists to close out the NFCA Leadoff Classic on March 3. Trine has outscored its opponents 55-6 over that stretch, and has scored 95 runs (7.31 average) in its 13 games to date.
Meanwhile, 2023 NCAA runner-up Salisbury (5-0) returns to action later this week when it opens the inaugural Margie Knight Classic with a home twinbill against Lynchburg. The Sea Gulls had all six of their games at the William Peace Triangle Classic canceled this past weekend following the rainout of a home doubleheader against Clarkson the previous Sunday.
NFCA Leadoff champion Linfield (4-0) will finally get back on the field on Thursday after having its Sunday conference doubleheader at Whitworth postponed, while No. 4 East Texas Baptist and fifth-ranked Christopher Newport both improved to 11-1 after cruising to three and four wins, respectively. No. 6 Berry (17-2) took care of business as well, sweeping three games from Sewanee to open Southern Athletic Association play.
Case Western Reserve (8-1) moved up one place to No. 7 after collecting four more victories, including a ranked triumph over Rowan. New No. 9 Bethel (8-2) surged three spots following a 5-1 week in which it also defeated Rowan. A 4-2 week dropped the (6-4) Profs to 11th.
Only one team — Belhaven (12-3) with two wins — played among the six teams in spots 12-17, which remained unchanged.
No. 18 Pfeiffer (16-0) gained two more places and has the most wins of any school in the rankings, after adding six more home triumphs, to run its record at Jack Ingram Field to 12-0 this season.
The three newcomers in the poll this week are No. 20 Huntingdon (15-1), No. 24 Calvin (9-1) and No. 25 Saint Mary’s (12-2).
The NFCA Division III Top 25 Coaches Poll is selected by 10 NCAA Division III head coaches representing the 10 NCAA regions. Current records are listed, with first-place votes in parentheses.
NFCA Division III Top 25 Softball Coaches Poll
March 12, 2024
|
Rank |
Team |
Points |
2024 Record |
Previous |
|
1 |
Trine (10) |
250 |
12-1 |
1 |
|
2 |
Salisbury |
240 |
5-0 |
2 |
|
3 |
Linfield |
230 |
4-0 |
3 |
|
4 |
East Texas Baptist |
220 |
11-1 |
4 |
|
5 |
Christopher Newport |
210 |
11-1 |
5 |
|
6 |
Berry |
200 |
17-2 |
6 |
|
7 |
Case Western Reserve |
190 |
8-1 |
8 |
|
8 |
Bethel |
180 |
8-2 |
11 |
|
9 |
Transylvania |
170 |
7-1 |
9 |
|
10 |
Randolph-Macon |
160 |
3-0-1 |
10 |
|
11 |
Rowan |
150 |
6-4 |
7 |
|
12 |
Belhaven |
140 |
12-3 |
12 |
|
13 |
Virginia Wesleyan |
130 |
5-3 |
13 |
|
14 |
Tufts |
120 |
0-0 |
14 |
|
15 |
Texas Lutheran |
110 |
6-0 |
15 |
|
16 |
Moravian |
100 |
2-3 |
16 |
|
17 |
Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
90 |
0-0 |
17 |
|
18 |
Pfeiffer |
80 |
16-0 |
20 |
|
19 |
Lebanon Valley |
70 |
8-2 |
19 |
|
20 |
Huntingdon |
60 |
15-1 |
NR |
|
21 |
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute |
50 |
7-0 |
24 |
|
22 |
Central (Iowa) |
30 |
5-4 |
23 |
|
23 |
Redlands |
23 |
12-3 |
21 |
|
24 |
Calvin |
21 |
9-1 |
NR |
|
25 |
Saint Mary’s (Minn.) |
14 |
12-2 |
NR |
Others receiving votes: Rochester 5, Chapman 4 and The College of New Jersey 3.
Dropped out: Coe, Concordia (Wis.) and Millikin.
2024 NFCA Division III Top 25 Committee
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