A shakeup was seen atop the Coaches' Top 25 Poll as a new No. 1 team nationally was named in Central Methodist. Former number one and reigning NAIA champion Missouri Valley slid down to 10th after suffering a pair of losses. With the movement from MVC, Mid-America Christian (Okla.) has reached the top-five and received a pair of votes as the best team in the country. The other 16 votes went to Central Methodist who is one of eight undefeated teams remaining in the rankings.
The 25 teams listed are the same as last week except Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) replaced University of Northwestern Ohio.
By The Numbers
This is the 65th NAIA Top 25 Coaches Poll to be released since the men's soccer program has been eligible for national rankings. They have achieved a national ranking or received votes in 38 of the 65 polls. The highest ranking in program history for the men's soccer team was achieved on the April 14, 2021 poll when the Birds came in at #5.
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 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 teams appear on.
- Teams that receive only one point on the ballot are not considered "receiving votes"
|
RANK
|
LAST WEEK
|
SCHOOL [FIRST-PLACE VOTES]
|
WON
|
FINAL POINTS
|
|
1
|
2
|
Central Methodist (Mo.) [16]
|
5-0
|
497
|
|
2
|
3
|
Keiser (Fla.)
|
4-0
|
477
|
|
3
|
4
|
Oklahoma Wesleyan
|
4-1
|
463
|
|
4
|
5
|
Columbia (Mo.)
|
5-1
|
450
|
|
5
|
6
|
Mid-America Christian (Okla.) [2]
|
7-0
|
438
|
|
6
|
8
|
Mobile (Ala.)
|
7-1
|
409
|
|
7
|
7
|
St. Thomas (Fla.)
|
3-0-1
|
399
|
|
8
|
12
|
Baker (Kan.)
|
5-2
|
389
|
|
9
|
11
|
Indiana Tech
|
6-1
|
362
|
|
10
|
1
|
Missouri Valley
|
4-2
|
361
|
|
11
|
10
|
Bellevue (Neb.)
|
6-2-1
|
327
|
|
12
|
9
|
Milligan (Tenn.)
|
5-1
|
322
|
|
13
|
15
|
Dalton State (Ga.)
|
3-2-1
|
289
|
|
14
|
16
|
Georgia Gwinnett
|
5-2-1
|
284
|
|
15
|
12
|
Cumberlands (Ky.)
|
1-2-2
|
277
|
|
16
|
17
|
William Carey (Miss.)
|
6-2
|
266
|
|
17
|
19
|
Ottawa (Ariz.)
|
6-1
|
232
|
|
18
|
18
|
Lindsey Wilson (Ky.)
|
1-1-1
|
226
|
|
19
|
21
|
MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.)
|
5-2
|
187
|
|
20
|
20
|
Rio Grande (Ohio)
|
3-2-1
|
183
|
|
21
|
14
|
Bethel (Tenn.)
|
5-1
|
171
|
|
22
|
22
|
Morningside (Iowa)
|
5-1
|
160
|
|
23
|
23
|
Corban (Ore.)
|
3-2
|
150
|
|
24
|
25
|
McPherson (Kan.)
|
4-2
|
111
|
|
25
|
NR
|
Embry-Riddle (Ariz.)
|
6-0
|
78
|
Dropped from the poll: University of Northwestern Ohio
Receiving Votes: Science & Arts (Okla.) 66; William Penn (Iowa) 50; Hope International (Calif.) 40; Reinhardt (Ga.) 38; Southeastern (Fla.) 21; LSU Shreveport (La.) 18; Southern Oregon 18; Southwestern Christian (Okla.) 14; Cardinal Stritch (Wis.) 12; Vanguard (Calif.) 12; Indiana Wesleyan 11; UC Merced 9; Bethel (Ind.) 9; Madonna (Mich.) 8; Grand View (Iowa) 7; Lyon (Ark.) 5; WVU Tech 5; Tennessee Wesleyan 4; Houston-Victoria (Texas) 4; Rocky Mountain (Mont.) 3; Northwestern (Iowa) 3