2016 Women’s Soccer Coaches’ Top 25 Poll – Oct. 11
CC RV
By Spencer Scheve, Communications and Sports Information Intern
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Spring Arbor (Mich.) claimed all 19 first place votes and 529 points to earn a sixth-consecutive No. 1 ranking in the Women's Soccer Coaches Top 25 Poll, the National Office announced Tuesday. The fifth regular season poll will be released on Oct. 18.
Top 25 highlights (historical information dates back to 1999):
• Spring Arbor (Mich.) claims its sixth No.1 ranking in-a-row, the most in school history. The last time the Cougars were out of the Top 25 was on Nov. 9, 2010.
• The Cougars are led by Ashley Timmons, who is ranked No. 1 in the NAIA in goals against per game (0.11), and Bethany Balcer, who is ranked No. 3 in the NAIA in shots per game (7.42).
• Behind the Cougars sits No. 2 Keiser (Fla.), who earned 512 points in this edition.
• The Seahawks are led by Amanda Blixt, who has recorded eight goals and six assists, tallying 22 points this season. Keiser sits in second in the NAIA in total wins (11), prior to postponing two matches due to Hurricane Mathew.
• Rounding out the top 5 is William Carey (Miss.) at No. 3 with 495 points, Northwestern Ohio at No. 4 with 475 points and Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) at No. 5 with 453 points.
• There are two new teams in the top 10, No. 6 Biola and No. 9 Vanguard (Calif.).
• The biggest move in the Top 25 is Biola (Calif.) jumping from No. 12 to No. 6, Westmont (Calif.) dropping from No. 4 to No. 11 and Benedictine (Kan.) falling from No. 9 to No. 16.
• There are two new teams in the Top 25 – No. 24 Davenport (Mich.) and No. 25 MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.).
• The last time Davenport was in the Top 25 was Nov. 4, 2014, when the Panthers were ranked No. 25.
• The last-time MidAmerica Nazarene was ranked in the Top 25 was Sept. 27, when the Pioneers were ranked No. 25.
• The two institutions to fall out of the Top 25 are St. Ambrose (Iowa) and Campbellsville (Ky.).
• There are four conferences tied at three teams for the most schools represented in the Top 25 are the Southern States Athletic Conference, Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference, Golden State Athletic Conference and the Heart of America Athletic Conference.
• Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) owns the longest active streak of consecutive appearances in the Top 25 with 175-consecutive mentions, including 146-straight in the Top 10.
• No. 5 Lindsey Wilson has the most No. 1 rankings with 58, followed by former NAIA member Azusa Pacific (Calif.) with 33.
• Former NAIA member Lee's (Tenn.) 2011 team is the last squad to be preseason ranked No. 1 and win the national title in the same year.
For the complete ratings calendar, click here.
Poll Methodology
- The poll was voted upon by a panel of head coaches representing each of the conferences, Association of Independent Institutions 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 considered a low ratings) 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 teams appears on.
- Teams that receive only one point in the ballot are not considered “receiving votes”
· For the complete ratings calendar, click here.
| RANK |
LAST ^ |
SCHOOL (1st PLACE VOTES) |
2016 RECORD |
FINAL POINTS |
| 1 |
1 |
Spring Arbor (Mich.) (19) |
12-0-0 |
529 |
| 2 |
2 |
Keiser (Fla.) |
11-0-0 |
512 |
| 3 |
4 |
William Carey (Miss.) |
10-2-0 |
495 |
| 4 |
5 |
Northwestern Ohio |
9-1-1 |
475 |
| 5 |
6 |
Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) |
6-3-0 |
453 |
| 6 |
12 |
Biola (Calif.) |
11-0-1 |
442 |
| 7 |
7 |
Mobile (Ala.) |
10-2-1 |
436 |
| 8 |
8 |
Martin Methodist (Tenn.) |
9-1-2 |
414 |
| 9 |
11 |
Vanguard (Calif.) |
9-3-0 |
379 |
| 10 |
11 |
Hastings (Neb.) |
11-1-1 |
377 |
| 11 |
4 |
Westmont (Calif.) |
10-2-1 |
368 |
| 12 |
14 |
Cumberland (Tenn.) |
9-1-1 |
341 |
| 13 |
15 |
Kansas Wesleyan |
9-0-2 |
318 |
| 14 |
16 |
Reinhardt (Ga.) |
10-1-0 |
303 |
| 15 |
17 |
Baker (Kan.) |
9-3-1 |
296 |
| 16 |
9 |
Benedictine (Kan.) |
8-3-0 |
269 |
| 17 |
18 |
Park (Mo.) |
7-2-1 |
252 |
| 18 |
19 |
Taylor (Ind.) |
11-1-0 |
246 |
| 19 |
20 |
Columbia (Mo.) |
10-1-2 |
218 |
| 20 |
20 |
John Brown (Ark.) |
10-1-1 |
216 |
| 21 |
24 |
Cardinal Stritch (Wis.) |
9-2-0 |
180 |
| 22 |
23 |
Siena Heights (Mich.) |
7-3-2 |
161 |
| 23 |
25 |
Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) |
7-2-2 |
135 |
| 24 |
NR |
Davenport (Mich.) |
11-0-1 |
131 |
| 25 |
NR |
MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) |
6-2-4 |
123 |
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Others receiving votes: Georgetown (Ky.) 96; Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) 95; Southeastern (Fla.) 55; Missouri Valley 29; St. Ambrose (Iowa) 22; Our Lady of the Lake (Texas) 20; Ottawa (Kan.) 14; Robert Morris (Ill.) 10; Midland (Neb.) 8; Campbellsville (Ky.) 7; Carroll (Mont.) 7; Bellevue (Neb.) 4; Indiana Wesleyan 3; St. Thomas (Fla.) 3
^ Based off 2016 Coaches’ Poll (Oct. 4, 2016)