LOUISVILLE, Ky. — East Texas Baptist finishes the season as the top team in the NFCA Division III Top 25 Coaches Poll after capturing its second national championship in school history last Wednesday.
The (48-3) Tigers defeated Belhaven twice to close the best-of-three NCAA Division III championship series after the (47-10) Blazers had dealt East Texas Baptist its first loss all season on its home field, 4-3, the previous day in the opening game of the matchup. It was also the first loss suffered anywhere by the Tigers in two months, snapping a 23-game win streak.
This was the second national championship for East Texas Baptist, which also won the 2010 Division III crown in head coach Janae Shirley’s third season.
Belhaven, meanwhile, closes 2024 as the second-ranked team after a magical run to its first Division III World Series in school history. After three straight triumphs at its NCAA Regional, the Blazers advanced to the eight-team finals on a walk-off home run by Anna Caime in the ninth inning of the decisive third game of their Super Regional series against Berry.
The other six squads that reached the World Series at Bell Park at Taylor Field on the campus of East Texas Baptist occupy the rest of the first eight spots. Third-place finishers Linfield (50-4), who had entered the NCAA tournament undefeated through its first 44 games, and Rowan (41-10) are the No. 3 and 4 teams, followed by fifth-place schools Wisconsin-Oshkosh (45-7) and Tufts (39-10), and seventh-place finishers Case Western Reserve (40-9) and Virginia Wesleyan (40-10).
Super Regional teams Berry (46-7) and Christopher Newport (34-7) round out the top 10. Every other ranked team in the final poll, plus those receiving votes, competed in this year’s NCAA tournament.
DePauw (30-16-1) just missed the cut line for the top 25, after a season in which the Tigers defeated eight teams (and tied another) that had been ranked during the year. That included a four-game stretch of three victories and a tie that closed March and opened April.
The NFCA Division III Top 25 Coaches Poll is selected by 10 NCAA Division III head coaches representing the 10 NCAA regions. Final 2024 records are listed, with first-place votes in parentheses.
NFCA Division III Top 25 Softball Coaches Poll
June 11, 2024
Rank |
Team |
Points |
Final 2024 Record |
Previous |
1 |
East Texas Baptist (10) |
250 |
48-3 |
2 |
2 |
Belhaven |
240 |
47-10 |
10 |
3 |
Linfield |
230 |
50-4 |
1 |
4 |
Rowan |
220 |
41-10 |
13 |
5 |
Wisconsin-Oshkosh |
210 |
45-7 |
16 |
6 |
Tufts |
200 |
39-10 |
17 |
7 |
Case Western Reserve |
190 |
40-9 |
7 |
8 |
Virginia Wesleyan |
180 |
40-10 |
8 |
9 |
Berry |
170 |
46-7 |
6 |
10 |
Christopher Newport |
160 |
34-7 |
3 |
11 |
Trine |
150 |
43-5 |
4 |
12 |
Salisbury |
140 |
39-7 |
5 |
13 |
Texas Lutheran |
130 |
33-5 |
9 |
14 |
Central |
120 |
33-13 |
T25 |
15 |
Williams |
110 |
26-13 |
NR |
16 |
Coe |
100 |
34-11 |
NR |
17 |
Muskingum |
90 |
31-16 |
NR |
18 |
Rochester |
80 |
32-9 |
18 |
19 |
Pfeiffer |
54 |
45-4 |
12 |
20 |
Randolph-Macon |
53 |
33-7-2 |
11 |
21 |
Maryville |
42 |
35-13 |
NR |
22 |
Bethel |
30 |
33-11 |
22 |
23 |
Calvin |
22 |
34-12 |
T25 |
24 |
Wisconsin-Whitewater |
19 |
33-10 |
15 |
25 |
Redlands |
14 |
33-14 |
NR |
Others receiving votes: DePauw 13, Saint Benedict 13, Roanoke 9, Transylvania 9, and Mount Union 2.
Dropped out: Dominican, Huntingdon, Husson, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Wisconsin-Stevens Point.
2024 NFCA Division III Top 25 Committee
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