LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Tampa swept Lynn in its final Sunshine State Conference series and heads into the postseason the unanimous No. 1 team in the final 2023 NFCA Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll of the regular season. The final poll will be announced on June 6.
The Spartans (40-3), who secured the SSC title last week, earned the South Region’s No. 1 overall seed and will host a pair of nationally-ranked Gulf South programs in No. 5 UAH and No. 15 Mississippi College, along with Tuskegee from the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
As with No. 1, the next five spots stayed the same. No. 2 North Georgia, No. 3 UT Tyler, No. 4 Central Oklahoma and No. 5 UAH all claimed their regular season and conference tournament crowns. The second-ranked NightHawks (54-6) shared the regular season with then-No. 19 Columbus State and avenged an in-season series defeat by sweeping the Cougars (44-14) in the Peach Belt Championship Series.
UT Tyler extended its win streak to 31 games and continued its unblemished home mark winning all three contests to claim the first Lone Star Conference tournament title in program history. The fourth-ranked Bronchos (47-6) and fifth-ranked Chargers (44-9) capped off league doubles winning the MIAA and Gulf South, respectively.
No. 6 UIndy won the GLVC regular season, but was upended by Lewis in the tournament final.
New-No. 7 Colorado Christian, the No. 2 seed in the South Central, continued its run through the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC), sweeping the regular season and tournament championships. The Cougars (55-4) won all three games to claim their second straight league tournament title.
Grand Valley State, winners of the GLIAC regular season, dipped to No. 8 after being eliminated from the conference tournament. The Lakers (40-6) will be the second seed in the Midwest Region.
West Texas A&M and Saint Leo make up the final two spots in the top 10. The Lady Buffs (47-6) and Lions (42-10) each finished second in their respective league’s regular season. WT will be the third seed, but will host the South Central’s other four-team pod, while Saint Leo is the second seed in the South and will host.
Out of the Top 10, Tampa, North Georgia (Southeast), UT Tyler (South Central),, Central Oklahoma (Central) and Indianapolis (Midwest) are No. 1 regional seeds this upcoming weekend for the NCAA Division II Championship. They are joined by No. 11 Concordia (West), No. 12 Adelphi (East) and RV East Stroudsburg (Atlantic) as the remaining top seeds. The 11th-ranked Golden Eagles (45-10) and 12th-ranked Panthers (43-6) collected league doubles.
Returning to the poll at No. 24 in Wilmington, which won the CACC regular-season and tournament titles. The Wildcats (39-13) will be the No. 2 seed in the East Region and host the other four-team pod.
The regional round of the 2023 NCAA Division II Championship will be held May 11-13 at 16 sites, followed by eight Super Regionals, May 18-19. The finals will be held May 25-31 in Chattanooga, Tenn.
The 2023 NFCA Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll is voted on by the NFCA Division II Top 25 Poll Committee. The committee consists of 16 NCAA Division II head coaches with two representing each of the NCAA’s eight regions. Records reflect games played through May 7, 2023.
2023 NFCA Division II Top 25 Softball Coaches Poll
May 9 (Week 13)
|
Rank |
School |
Points |
2023 Record |
Previous Ranking |
|
1 |
Tampa (16) |
400 |
40-3 |
1 |
|
2 |
North Georgia |
383 |
54-6 |
2 |
|
3 |
UT Tyler |
369 |
54-4 |
3 |
|
4 |
Central Oklahoma |
350 |
47-6 |
4 |
|
5 |
UAH |
336 |
44-9 |
5 |
|
6 |
Indianapolis |
308 |
50-8 |
6 |
|
7 |
Colorado Christian |
306 |
55-4 |
8 |
|
8 |
Grand Valley State |
279 |
40-6 |
7 |
|
9 |
West Texas A&M |
266 |
47-6 |
10 |
|
10 |
Saint Leo |
252 |
42-10 |
11 |
|
11 |
Concordia |
246 |
45-10 |
12 |
|
12 |
Adelphi |
224 |
43-6 |
13 |
|
13 |
Missouri Southern |
194 |
40-13 |
25 |
|
14 |
Rogers State |
178 |
43-12 |
9 |
|
15 |
Mississippi College |
176 |
43-10 |
14 |
|
16 |
Sonoma State |
161 |
34-11 |
15 |
|
17 |
Wingate |
129 |
44-13 |
17 |
|
18 |
Harding |
121 |
44-12 |
16 |
|
19 |
Charleston |
95 |
40-9 |
21 |
|
20 |
West Alabama |
90 |
41-12 |
20 |
|
21 |
Columbus State |
84 |
44-14 |
19 |
|
21 |
Oklahoma Baptist |
84 |
43-10 |
18 |
|
23 |
Oklahoma Christian |
69 |
36-15 |
22 |
|
24 |
Wilmington |
36 |
39-13 |
RV |
|
25 |
Lenoir-Rhyne |
23 |
36-12 |
23 |
New to Poll: No. 24 Wilmington
Dropped Out: No. 24 Lubbock Christian
Receiving Votes: Lubbock Christian (21), Nova Southeastern (8), East Stroudsburg (4), Southern Arkansas (4), Auburn-Montgomery (2), Cal State Dominguez Hills (2).
The 2023 NFCA Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll is voted on by the NFCA Division II Top 25 Poll Committee. The committee consists of 16 NCAA Division II head coaches with two representing each of the NCAA’s eight regions. Records reflect games played through May 7, 2023.
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