LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Texas Lutheran ran its win streak to 10 games to keep its hold on the No. 1 spot in the NFCA Division III Top 25 Coaches Poll.
The (16-3) Bulldogs swept LeTourneau on Monday, and head an unchanged top three, which includes No. 2 Salisbury (14-2) and No. 3 Virginia Wesleyan (13-3). While Salisbury was idle this past week, the defending national champion Marlins took two games apiece from Juniata and Muhlenberg to run their win streak to six straight.
Meanwhile, NFCA Leadoff Classic champion Christopher Newport (15-0) outscored Juniata 24-0 in a doubleheader sweep to continue its surge up the rankings — five more spots this week to No. 4. The Captains have allowed just two runs over their last eight contests, while scoring 97.
Leadoff Classic runner-up Belhaven (14-1) is following a similar path, gaining three more places to fifth, and running its win streak to 13 with a sweep of Howard Payne on Monday. The Blazers’ lone loss remains an 8-0 defeat to No. 7 East Texas Baptist in the middle game of a three-game American Southwest Conference series to open the 2022 season.
No. 6 Linfield (15-2) and No. 16 Moravian (10-0) are the other big movers of the week, gaining five and six places, respectively, in this week’s ranking.
Elsewhere, Chapman (15-1) at No. 20 and Muskingum (6-2) at No. 24 are the poll newcomers, while Mount St. Joseph (11-4) and Wisconsin’s Concordia (10-1) move into the Top 25 from the receiving votes category.
The NFCA Division III Top 25 Coaches Poll is selected by 10 NCAA Division III head coaches representing the 10 NCAA regions. Current 2022 records are listed, with first-place votes in parentheses.
NFCA Division III Top 25 Softball Coaches Poll – March 15, 2022
|
Rank |
Team |
Points |
2022 Record |
Previous |
|
1 |
Texas Lutheran (10) |
250 |
16-3 |
1 |
|
2 |
Salisbury |
240 |
14-2 |
2 |
|
3 |
Virginia Wesleyan |
230 |
13-3 |
3 |
|
4 |
Christopher Newport |
220 |
15-0 |
9 |
|
5 |
Belhaven |
210 |
14-1 |
8 |
|
6 |
Linfield |
200 |
15-2 |
11 |
|
7 |
East Texas Baptist |
190 |
15-5 |
4 |
|
8 |
Birmingham-Southern |
180 |
13-4 |
5 |
|
9 |
Eastern Connecticut State |
170 |
6-2 |
6 |
|
10 |
Tufts |
160 |
0-0 |
7 |
|
11 |
DePauw |
150 |
5-5 |
10 |
|
12 |
Randolph-Macon |
140 |
12-1 |
17 |
|
13 |
Roanoke |
130 |
12-2 |
19 |
|
14 |
The College of New Jersey |
120 |
3-1 |
12 |
|
15 |
Berry |
110 |
10-7 |
13 |
|
16 |
Moravian |
100 |
10-0 |
22 |
|
17 |
Milwaukee School of Engineering |
90 |
5-1 |
14 |
|
18 |
Wisconsin-Oshkosh |
80 |
5-3 |
16 |
|
19 |
Rowan |
70 |
7-3 |
18 |
|
20 |
Chapman |
34 |
15-1 |
NR |
|
21 |
Mount St. Joseph |
33 |
11-4 |
RV |
|
T22 |
Concordia (Wis.) |
24 |
10-1 |
RV |
|
T22 |
Saint Benedict (Minn.) |
24 |
9-1 |
23 |
|
24 |
Muskingum |
22 |
6-2 |
NR |
|
25 |
Millikin |
21 |
10-2 |
20 |
Others receiving votes: Gettysburg 20, Brandeis 16, Babson 8, Kean 3, Huntingdon 2, and Nebraska Wesleyan 2.
Dropped out: Case Western Reserve, Maryville (Tenn.), Rochester, St. John Fisher, Trine and Wartburg.
