LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Top-ranked Salisbury and No. 10 East Texas Baptist were the only teams to hold their spot in a reshuffled first 10 in this week’s NFCA Division III Top 25 Coaches Poll.

Top-ranked Salisbury (34-2) continued to take care of business, run-ruling Marymount twice on Friday, to remain the unanimous No. 1 team for an eighth straight week. The Sea Gulls have a twinbill at Catholic on Friday before hosting new-No. 6 Christopher Newport (23-5) for a Sunday doubleheader to wrap up the regular season.

Berry (32-4), which has won 18 straight games, but was idle this past week, takes over Christopher Newport’s second spot following two losses by the Captains. The Vikings have a first-round bye in the Southern Athletic Association (SAA) tournament, and will face the winner of the noon Sewanee-Millsaps game at 2:30 p.m. on Friday.

Case Western Reserve (30-2), meanwhile, is the new No. 3 squad, after sweeping a four-game University Athletic Association series with New York University to capture its school-record 16th consecutive game.

Linfield (41-4) moved up to fourth after winning its 11th Northwest Conference tournament title and reaching 40 wins for the fifth time, and first since 2012, when the Wildcats reached the NCAA final. Texas Lutheran (32-4) dropped two places to No. 5 after losing the first game of its three-game series with St. Thomas (26-8), which has received votes the last two weeks.

Christopher Newport may have tumbled four places, but won three straight to close out the week. Trine (26-4) slipped from fifth to seventh after splitting with Calvin and sweeping Alma.

No. 8 Tufts (29-2) swapped spots with Bethel (21-3) after adding three more wins to its resume. The Jumbos have now seven straight and 18 of their last 19 contests, while Bethel has won 11 straight.

Elsewhere, No. 23 Wisconsin-Whitewater (20-6) and No. 24 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (25-5) are this week’s new teams. The Warhawks swept Wisconsin-Eau Claire and No. 16 Wisconsin-Oshkosh before splitting with Illinois Wesleyan in a solid 5-1 week. The Engineers, meanwhile, continued their strong play and extended their win streak to 14.

The NFCA Division III Top 25 Coaches Poll is selected by 10 NCAA Division III head coaches representing the 10 NCAA regions. Current 2023 records are listed, with first-place votes in parentheses. Weekly polls continue through May 16. A final poll will be released on June 13 following completion of the national championship.

NFCA Division III Top 25 Softball Coaches Poll

Others receiving votes: Huntingdon 9, Pfeiffer 9, Eastern Connecticut State 7, St. Thomas (Texas) 5, Greensboro 2, Luther 2, Calvin 1, LeTourneau 1.

Dropped out: Hardin-Simmons.

2023 NFCA Division III Top 25 Committee

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