No. 2 Rio Grande, No. 21 WVU Tech represent RSC in NAIA Men's Soccer Top 25
No. 2 Rio Grande, No. 21 WVU Tech represent RSC in NAIA Men's Soccer Top 25
By Chad Waller, Director of Communications & Sports Information
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — In the first regular-season edition, the Eagles of Oklahoma Wesleyan claim their first-ever No. 1 ranking in the NAIA Men's Soccer Coaches' Top 25 Poll, the national office announced Tuesday. With 11 first-place votes, Oklahoma Wesleyan moves up from No. 6 in the preseason installment on Aug. 16.
Top 25 Highlights (historical information dates back to 2000):
• No. 1 Oklahoma Wesleyan garnered the top ranking for the first time in school history. The Eagles compiled 11 first-place votes and 462 total points. The previous best ranking was No. 2 during the 2015 season on several occasions, with the last coming Nov. 15.
• With a 4-0-1 record this year, the Eagles have the second-longest active win streak in NAIA Men's Soccer. Since September of 2015, Oklahoma Wesleyan has gone 18-0-2 during that period. The last loss was at the hands of John Brown (Ark.) on Sept. 22, 2015.
• Oklahoma Wesleyan has already defeated three Top 25 opponents, with the last one coming in the NAIA Match of the Week – a 3-0 victory over then-No. 16 Science & Arts (Okla.) on Sept. 17. Next up on the schedule is No. 23 Southwestern Christian (Okla.) Saturday.
• Defending national champion and Preseason No. 1 Rio Grande (Ohio) drops down one spot to the second position with 452 total points. The RedStorm, who are 7-1-0 on the year, gathered five first-place votes.
• Improving two spots, No. 3 Davenport (Mich.) stands with 423 points. The Panthers are 5-1-0 overall.
• No. 4 MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.), with a 4-1-1 record, collected 411 points.
• Rounding out the top five, No. 5 Hastings (Neb.) vaults all the way up from a No. 25 preseason spot. The improvement is the largest within the poll. The Broncos have sprinted out to a 7-0-0 start with wins over then-No. 10 Baker (Kan.), No. 16 Science & Arts, then-No. 17 Bellevue (Neb.) and then-No. 24 Lyon (Ark.). Hastings grabbed the remaining first-place vote to go along with 405 points.
• No. 9 Campbellsville (Ky.) currently is on the NAIA's longest active undefeated streak at 21 matches (19-0-2). The Tigers are 5-0-0 this year and next take on Marian (Ind.) Tuesday.
• No. 10 Baker and No. 13 Union (Ky.) are the only teams to hold their spot from the preseason.
• Seven teams are newcomers in the first regular-season edition, compared to the Preseason Top 25.
• No. 6 Thomas (Ga.) is a highlight within the group of newcomers. The Night Hawks are off to a 6-0-1 start, with wins over Top 25 foes Bellevue and then-No. 23 Lindsey Wilson (Ky.).
• Fourteen of the 19 conferences are represented this week. The Heart of America Athletic Conference lands the most teams in the Top 25 with four: No. 4 MidAmerica Nazarene, No. 10 Baker, No. 14 Grand View (Iowa) and No. 17 Missouri Valley.
• Overall, eight leagues send multiple teams into the Top 25.
• Rio Grande (Ohio) leads the all-time list of No. 1 rankings with 57.
• With the addition of Oklahoma Wesleyan to the list of all-time No. 1-ranked teams, 21 different teams have now been ranked No. 1 at some point in program history for the NAIA.
• Rio Grande is trying to become the first time to be ranked preseason No. 1 and win the national championship in the same season since Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) did it in 2001
• Last season, there were 44 different teams to be ranked at least once – eight teams appeared on each poll last season, including the preseason poll
• Lindsey Wilson is the longest consecutively-ranked active school at 97-straight polls, dating back to the first installment of the 2007 Top 25 Poll (Sept. 5) and Rio Grande is next in line with 90-consecutive rankings, followed by Missouri Valley at 57.
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"
• Frequency of polls occur bi-weekly. This policy was approved by the National Administrative Council (NAC) for the 2016-17 academic season. This change will allow raters the opportunity to consider a larger body of work in between rating periods.
• For the complete men's soccer ratings calendar, click here.
2016 NAIA Men's Soccer Coaches' Top 25 Poll - No. 1 (Sept. 20)
| RANK | LAST WEEK | SCHOOL (1ST PLACE VOTES) | 2016 RECORD | TOTAL POINTS |
| 1 | 6 | Oklahoma Wesleyan (11) | 4-0-1 | 462 |
| 2 | 1 | Rio Grande (Ohio) (5) | 7-1-0 | 452 |
| 3 | 5 | Davenport (Mich.) | 5-1-0 | 423 |
| 4 | 2 | MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) | 4-1-1 | 411 |
| 5 | 25 | Hastings (Neb.) (1) | 7-0-0 | 405 |
| 6 | RV | Thomas (Ga.) | 6-0-1 | 390 |
| 7 | 18 | Northwestern Ohio | 4-1-1 | 386 |
| 8 | 14 | Vanguard (Calif.) | 5-0-0 | 372 |
| 9 | 12 | Campbellsville (Ky.) | 5-0-0 | 350 |
| 10 | 10 | Baker (Kan.) | 5-2-0 | 333 |
| 11 | 20 | Corban (Ore.) | 7-0-0 | 323 |
| 12 | 11 | Biola (Calif.) | 5-1-0 | 310 |
| 13 | 13 | Union (Ky.) | 6-2-0 | 274 |
| 14 | RV | Grand View (Iowa) | 4-1-1 | 259 |
| 15 | RV | Bryan (Tenn.) | 6-0-0 | 209 |
| 16 | 9 | Indiana Wesleyan | 5-2-0 | 206 |
| 17 | 3 | Missouri Valley | 3-2-1 | 198 |
| 18 | NR | John Brown (Ark.) | 4-1-1 | 197 |
| 19 | 23 | Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) | 4-2-0 | 188 |
| 20 | 4 | Lindenwood-Belleville (Ill.) | 3-3-0 | 152 |
| 21 | RV | WVU Tech | 5-1-1 | 150 |
| 22 | 21 | Marymount (Calif.) | 3-2-1 | 140 |
| 23 | NR | Southwestern Christian (Okla.) | 6-1-0 | 120 |
| 24 | NR | Tennessee Wesleyan | 5-0-1 | 83 |
| 25 | 8 | Rocky Mountain (Mont.) | 3-2-0 | 81 |
Others Receiving Votes: Columbia (Mo.) 75; William Carey (Miss.) 74; Cumberland (Tenn.) 68; Westmont (Calif.) 61; Midland (Neb.) 58; Southeastern (Fla.) 43; Spring Arbor (Mich.) 37; McPherson (Kan.) 34; Reinhardt (Ga.) 23; Madonna (Mich.) 23; Johnson & Wales (Colo.) 20; The Master's (Calif.) 10; Middle Georgia State 7.