LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Reigning national champion Trine continued to lead a powerful first four in the NFCA Division III Top 25 Coaches Poll.
The top-ranked (20-1) Thunder captured four five-inning games by a 42-0 margin to extend their win streak to 16, while No. 2 Salisbury (14-1) outscored its opponents 40-4 in a quartet of run-rule shortened contests.
No. 3 Linfield (14-0) remained perfect with four conference victories over Pacific Lutheran, while fourth-ranked East Texas Baptist (17-1), like Trine, has won 16 straight. The top four teams in the poll have combined to win their last 55 games.
Meanwhile, No. 5 Christopher Newport (15-2), No. 6 Berry (24-3), seventh-ranked Case Western Reserve (15-2) and No. 8 Belhaven (22-3) all kept rolling as well to round out an unchanged first eight.
Randolph-Macon (9-2-1) and Virginia Wesleyan (11-4) split their doubleheader last Tuesday and swapped the No. 9 and 11 spots, bookending No. 10 Bethel, which has been idle since March 14.
No. 12 Huntingdon (21-3) gained six more places this week, while undefeated Wisconsin-Whitewater (10-0) broke into the rankings for the first time this season at No. 16. Tufts (11-3) slipped three spots, to 17th, after completing a grueling 14 games in nine days with a 7-3 week.
Dominican (15-1), stayed put at No. 22 after being ranked for the first time in school history last week. Wisconsin-Stevens Point is the other poll newcomer this week at No. 23.
The NFCA Division III Top 25 Coaches Poll is selected by 10 NCAA Division III head coaches representing the 10 NCAA regions. Current records are listed, with first-place votes in parentheses.
NFCA Division III Top 25 Softball Coaches Poll
March 26, 2024
|
Rank |
Team |
Points |
2024 Record |
Previous |
|
1 |
Trine (10) |
250 |
20-1 |
1 |
|
2 |
Salisbury |
240 |
14-1 |
2 |
|
3 |
Linfield |
230 |
14-0 |
3 |
|
4 |
East Texas Baptist |
220 |
17-1 |
4 |
|
5 |
Christopher Newport |
210 |
15-2 |
5 |
|
6 |
Berry |
200 |
24-3 |
6 |
|
7 |
Case Western Reserve |
190 |
15-2 |
7 |
|
8 |
Belhaven |
180 |
22-3 |
8 |
|
9 |
Randolph-Macon |
170 |
9-2-1 |
11 |
|
10 |
Bethel |
160 |
11-3 |
10 |
|
11 |
Virginia Wesleyan |
150 |
11-4 |
9 |
|
12 |
Huntingdon |
140 |
21-3 |
T18 |
|
13 |
Rowan |
130 |
15-5 |
13 |
|
14 |
Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
120 |
5-1 |
17 |
|
15 |
Texas Lutheran |
110 |
12-2 |
15 |
|
16 |
Wisconsin-Whitewater |
100 |
10-0 |
NR |
|
17 |
Tufts |
90 |
11-3 |
14 |
|
18 |
Pfeiffer |
80 |
20-0 |
T18 |
|
19 |
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute |
70 |
9-0-1 |
21 |
|
20 |
Moravian |
41 |
9-4 |
16 |
|
21 |
Transylvania |
35 |
9-6 |
12 |
|
22 |
Dominican |
34 |
15-1 |
22 |
|
23 |
Wisconsin-Stevens Point |
29 |
14-2 |
NR |
|
24 |
Central (Iowa) |
25 |
12-5 |
24 |
|
25 |
Lynchburg |
17 |
14-4 |
23 |
Others receiving votes: The College of New Jersey 14, Redlands 10, Lebanon Valley 3 and Saint Mary’s (Minn.) 2.
Dropped out: Calvin, Nebraska Wesleyan and SUNY Cortland.
2024 NFCA Division III Top 25 Committee
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