LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Texas Lutheran, who went 5-1 at this past weekend’s NFCA Division III Leadoff Classic, is the new unanimous No. 1 team in the NFCA Division III Top 25 Coaches Poll.
The (9-3) Bulldogs, beat two ranked teams and two squads receiving votes at the power-packed Leadoff at the South Commons Complex in Columbus, Ga. Texas Lutheran’s lone loss was a 13-9 slugfest against then-No. 1 DePauw.
Meanwhile, Salisbury (14-2) moves up to No. 2 from eighth after a 5-1 Leadoff, which included three top-15 victories. The Sea Gulls’ lone defeat in Georgia was a 7-4 loss to then-No. 17 Berry.
Reigning national champion Virginia Wesleyan (9-3) slips one spot to third after a solid 5-1 showing at the Leadoff, followed by East Texas Baptist (13-5), Birmingham-Southern (9-3), Eastern Connecticut State (4-2) and Tufts (0-0) in an unchanged 4-7.
Leadoff runner-up Belhaven (12-1) is next at No. 8 after going a perfect 6-0 at the Leadoff, followed by unbeaten Leadoff champion Christopher Newport (9-0) in ninth. DePauw (5-5) rounds out the first 10 teams.
Linfield (11-2), which outscored its six Leadoff opponents 55-17, climbed nine spots in this week’s ranking, but lost 1-0 to unranked Transylvania in its tournament finale to keep them out of the top 10.
Elsewhere, No. 15 Rochester (1-5) remains highly-regarded despite its record, as four of its five losses have been to No. 2 Salisbury. And Trine (0-6) held on to a Top 25 spot after going winless at the Leadoff against five ranked opponents while playing five of its six games without head coach Donnie Danklefsen, who had to fly home for a family emergency.
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 8, 2022
|
Rank |
Team |
Points |
2022 Record |
Previous |
|
1 |
Texas Lutheran (10) |
250 |
9-3 |
2 |
|
2 |
Salisbury |
240 |
14-2 |
8 |
|
3 |
Virginia Wesleyan |
230 |
9-3 |
2 |
|
4 |
East Texas Baptist |
220 |
13-5 |
4 |
|
5 |
Birmingham-Southern |
210 |
9-3 |
5 |
|
6 |
Eastern Connecticut State |
200 |
4-2 |
6 |
|
7 |
Tufts |
190 |
0-0 |
7 |
|
8 |
Belhaven |
180 |
12-1 |
18 |
|
9 |
Christopher Newport |
170 |
9-0 |
19 |
|
10 |
DePauw |
160 |
5-5 |
1 |
|
11 |
Linfield |
150 |
11-2 |
20 |
|
12 |
The College of New Jersey |
140 |
1-0 |
10 |
|
13 |
Berry |
130 |
10-5 |
17 |
|
14 |
Milwaukee School of Engineering |
120 |
5-1 |
11 |
|
15 |
Rochester |
110 |
1-5 |
9 |
|
16 |
Wisconsin-Oshkosh |
100 |
5-3 |
12 |
|
17 |
Randolph-Macon |
66 |
10-1 |
NR |
|
18 |
Rowan |
56 |
3-2 |
NR |
|
19 |
Roanoke |
54 |
10-0 |
NR |
|
20 |
Millikin |
49 |
6-0 |
21 |
|
21 |
Gettysburg |
48 |
3-1 |
24 |
|
22 |
Moravian |
30 |
10-0 |
NR |
|
23 |
Saint Benedict (Minn.) |
27 |
6-0 |
NR |
|
T24 |
Brandeis |
25 |
6-2 |
22 |
|
T24 |
Trine |
25 |
0-6 |
16 |
Others receiving votes: Babson 23, Case Western Reserve 17, Wartburg 14, Mount St. Joseph 8, Huntingdon 3, Concordia (Wis.) 1, Maryville (Tenn.) 1, and St. John Fisher 1.
Dropped out: Alfred, Aurora, Benedictine, Calvin, Coe, Emory, and Piedmont.
