2015 NAIA Men’s Soccer Coaches’ Top 25 Poll – No. 6 (Oct. 27)
By Chad Waller, Director of Communications & Sports Information
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The sixth regular-season edition of the 2015 NAIA Men’s Soccer Coaches’ Top 25 Poll has been announced Tuesday by the national office. For the sixth-straight week, Rio Grande (Ohio) claims the No. 1 ranking. The seventh regular-season edition will be released on Tuesday, Nov. 3 and the 3rd and final installment of the MRPI will be announced Monday, Nov. 16.
Top 25 Highlights (historical information dates back to 2000):
• Rio Grande (Ohio) collected 498 total points and 18 first-place nods to earn the unanimous distinction as the No. 1-ranked team. The RedStorm hold the most wins in the NAIA with a 16-1-0 mark.
• Rio Grande wrapped up the regular-season clinching the Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (KIAC) championship. The RedStorm will have nearly three weeks off prior to the KIAC postseason tournament on Nov. 12.
• Rio Grande landed the No. 1 spot for the 11th occasion in the last 13 polls, dating back to last year.
• Since 2008, the RedStorm have now reached at least 16 wins each year. Their average win total has been 17.8 victories during that span.
• No. 2 Oklahoma Wesleyan posted 475 total points and now claim a top-five ranking for the sixth-straight occasion.
• Third-ranked Davenport (Mich.) is trying to become the first team to be ranked preseason No. 1 and win the national championship in the same season since Lindsey Wilson did it in 2001.
• Improving two spots, No. 6 Cumberland (Tenn.) is the lone undefeated team in the NAIA with a 15-0-0 record. The Bulldogs take on No. 18 Campbellsville (Ky.) Friday before the regular season ends with Ohio Christian on Nov. 3.
• No. 11 Biola (Calif.) boasts the best positive movement within the Top 25 with a 12-spot hike. The Eagles are 7-1 in their last eight matches, including a 1-0 shutout against then-No. 6 Vanguard (Calif.) on Oct. 21.
• Conversely, No. 21 Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) tumbles down 10 positions for the worst fall. In their last eight matches, the Blue Raiders are 4-3-1.
• Two rookies – No. 18 Campbellsville and No. 25 Roosevelt (Ill.) – enter into the Top 25 this week. This is the first men’s soccer national mention for the Lakers in school history. Campbellsville is ranked for the first time since Oct. 15, 2013 (No. 23).
• Bellevue (Neb.), one of two teams to fall out this week, had been previously ranked for 16-consecutive editions.
• Sixteen of the 19 conferences, Association of Independent Institutions (AII) and unaffiliated group were represented this week. The Heart of America Athletic Conference and Mid-South Conference field the most representatives in the Top 25 with three each.
• Through seven polls this year (including Preseason Top 25), there have been 44 different teams to be ranked at least once – 12 teams have held a ranking in each of these polls.
• Rio Grande boasts the most all-time No. 1 rankings with 52, followed by Lindsey Wilson with 48, Bethel (Tenn.) with 11 and Hastings with 10. Overall, 21 different teams have claimed the No. 1 spot in the poll.
• Rio Grande has garnered at least one top ranking in each of the past four seasons and five out of the last six overall.
• Lindsey Wilson is the longest consecutively-ranked active school at 101-straight polls, dating back to the first installment of the 2007 Top 25 Poll (Sept. 5). Rio Grande is next in line with 94-consecutive rankings, followed by Missouri Valley at 61.
• Since 2000, just two teams have spent the entire season ranked No. 1—Bethel in 2009 and Rio Grande in 2004.
Poll Methodology:
• The poll was voted upon by a panel of 19 head coaches representing each of the conferences, independents and unaffiliated groups.
• The Top 25 is determined by a points system based on how each voter ranks the best teams. A team receives 30 points for each first place vote, 29 for second place and so on through the list.
• The highest and lowest ranking for each team (a non-rating is a low rating) is removed and the team’s ranking will be recalculated with an additional point added to each team for every ballot (including discounted ballots) that the team appears on.
• Teams who receive only one point in the ballot will not be listed in the “Receiving Votes” category.
• The Modified Ratings Percentage Index (MRPI) is a separate ranking conducted on Sept. 30, Oct. 21 and Nov. 16. The MRPI—first adopted in 2010—will select the at-large national championship qualifying teams and seed the 32-team national championship opening round field.
• For the complete Top 25 calendar, click
here.
2015 NAIA Men’s Soccer Coaches’ Top 25 Poll (Oct. 27)
| RANK |
LAST WEEK |
SCHOOL (1ST PLACE VOTES) |
2015 RECORD |
TOTAL POINTS |
| 1 |
1 |
Rio Grande (Ohio) (18) |
16-1-0 |
498 |
| 2 |
2 |
Oklahoma Wesleyan |
14-1-0 |
475 |
| 3 |
3 |
Davenport (Mich.) |
13-1-2 |
469 |
| 4 |
5 |
Northwestern Ohio |
13-2-0 |
449 |
| 5 |
7 |
Missouri Valley |
13-2-0 |
439 |
| 6 |
8 |
Cumberland (Tenn.) |
15-0-0 |
410 |
| 7 |
4 |
Baker (Kan.) |
13-2-1 |
401 |
| 8 |
12 |
Rocky Mountain (Mont.) |
15-1-1 |
362 |
| 9 |
13 |
MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) |
12-3-1 |
356 |
| 10 |
14 |
Science & Arts (Okla.) |
14-2-0 |
327 |
| 11 |
23 |
Biola (Calif.) |
11-4-1 |
323 |
| 12 |
T15 |
Columbia (Mo.) |
15-2-0 |
300 |
| 13 |
6 |
Vanguard (Calif.) |
12-3-0 |
293 |
| 14 |
10 |
Union (Ky.) |
13-1-3 |
274 |
| 15 |
9 |
Corban (Ore.) |
14-2-0 |
261 |
| 16 |
17 |
Thomas (Ga.) |
13-3-0 |
257 |
| 17 |
18 |
Southeastern (Fla.) |
11-4-0 |
249 |
| 18 |
RV |
Campbellsville (Ky.) |
13-2-0 |
239 |
| 19 |
21 |
Hastings (Neb.) |
11-3-2 |
221 |
| 20 |
19 |
Marymount (Calif.) |
10-3-1 |
211 |
| 21 |
11 |
Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) |
13-4-1 |
192 |
| 22 |
22 |
Lyon (Ark.) |
13-1-1 |
161 |
| 23 |
25 |
Mobile (Ala.) |
10-4-2 |
156 |
| 24 |
T15 |
Ashford (Iowa) |
9-5-1 |
145 |
| 25 |
RV |
Roosevelt (Ill.) |
12-3-2 |
88 |
Dropped from rankings: No. 20 Bellevue (Neb.), No. 24 WVU Tech (W.Va.).
Others Receiving Votes: The Master's (Calif.) 79; Bellevue (Neb.) 71; WVU Tech 68; Park (Mo.) 54; Indiana Wesleyan 31; Bryan (Tenn.) 28; Georgia Gwinnett 14; Bethel (Tenn.) 13; Central Methodist (Mo.) 9;
Evergreen (Wash.) 5; Martin Methodist (Tenn.) 4; St. Thomas (Fla.) 3.