By Travis Rae, Communications & Sports Information Intern

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – For the third-consecutive week and sixth time this season, Embry-Riddle (Fla.) has claimed the No. 1 ranking in the 2013 NAIA Men’s Tennis Coaches’ Top 25 Poll, the national office announced Monday. The Eagles received 9-of-12 first-place votes for 310 points to secure the top spot.

The 24 qualifiers for the NAIA Men’s Tennis National Championship will be announced at 5 p.m. CDT today and the seeds and brackets will be announced at 5 p.m. CDT Tuesday on NAIA.org.

Embry-Riddle won its fifth-straight The Sun Conference Tournament championship with a 5-1 victory over No. 15 Northwood (Fla.) April 21. Embry-Riddle has won 18-consecutive matches, dating back to March 5.

Receiving one first-place vote and notching 299 points is Auburn Montgomery (Ala.), who holds steady at No. 2. No. 3 Vanguard (Calif.) received the last two first-place votes and tallied 296 points. With 279 points, Westmont (Calif.) claims the No. 4 ranking.

Rounding out the top five is Bethany (Kan.) with 269 points. Bethany won the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament on May 3 by defeating then-No. 17 McPherson (Kan.), 5-0.

No. 18 Graceland (Iowa) makes the biggest leap in the poll this week, improving three spots. Graceland fell short in the Unaffiliated Group Tournament featuring America Midwest Conference, Heart of America Athletic Conference and TranSouth Conference teams. The Yellowjackets were defeated, 5-4, to Bethel (Tenn.) on April 27 in the championship match.

No teams fell out of the Top 25 or joined the poll this week.

Ten of the 13 conferences/independents/unaffiliated groupings are represented throughout the Top 25, led by The Sun Conference and Mid-South Conference with four teams apiece. A trio of conferences follow with three teams each.

The poll was voted upon by a panel of head coaches representing each of the conferences/independents/unaffiliated groupings. The postseason poll will be announced on May 22.

Notes: (All information as of the 2000 season) Only two teams have held the No. 1 ranking this year: Embry-Riddle (Fla.) and Auburn Montgomery (Ala.)… Auburn Montgomery’s 28 top mentions are the most all-time, followed by former-NAIA members Azusa Pacific (Calif.) and Fresno Pacific (Calif.), who each have 23 … Oklahoma City has appeared at No. 1 a total of 13 times…. Embry-Riddle has claimed the No. 1 ranking six times, while SCAD Savannah (Ga.) has topped the poll twice … Fresno Pacific became the sixth preseason top selection to go on to win the national title in 2011 … Auburn Montgomery was the last to accomplish the feat prior to Fresno Pacific, as the Warhawks did so in 2008.

2013 Men’s Tennis Coaches’ Final Top 25

RANK	LAST TIME	SCHOOL (1ST PLACE VOTES)	RECORD	TOTAL POINTS
1	1	Embry-Riddle (Fla.) (9)	20-2	310
2	2	Auburn Montgomery (Ala.) (1)	18-3	299
3	3	Vanguard (Calif.) (2)	22-0	296
4	4	Westmont (Calif.)	11-10	279
5	6	Bethany (Kan.)	22-1	269
6	5	Xavier (La.)	14-7	268
7	7	Bethel (Tenn.)	20-1	252
8	8	Lindsey Wilson (Ky.)	16-3	244
9	9	Cumberland (Tenn.)	17-4	232
10	10	Concordia (Calif.)	11-12	220
11	11	Belhaven (Miss.)	15-4	210
12	12	Aquinas (Mich.)	23-4	203
13	14	William Carey (Miss.)	8-5	187
13	13	Oklahoma Baptist	15-10	187
15	15	Northwood (Fla.)	12-5	176
16	16	Lewis-Clark State (Idaho)	7-8	162
17	18	Northwestern Ohio	13-7	143
18	21	Graceland (Iowa)	14-6	134
19	19	Warner (Fla.)	12-9	126
20	20	Pikeville (Ky.)	10-5	123
21	23	Olivet Nazarene (Ill.)	10-10	112
22	22	Campbellsville (Ky.)	10-9	108
23	17	McPherson (Kan.)	22-7	95
24	24	Davenport (Mich.)	18-7	85
25	25	Webber International (Fla.)	10-12	74

Others receiving votes: Indiana Wesleyan 58; Coastal Georgia 45; Martin Methodist (Tenn.) 42; Grace (Ind.) 17; St. Francis (Ill.) 14; Asbury (Ky.) 12; Mobile (Ala.) 11; St. Thomas (Fla.) 6; Spring Arbor (Mich.) 5.