By Trevor Lininger, NAIA Athletic Communications and Media Intern
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Crusaders of William Carey (Miss.) claim the No. 1 ranking in the NAIA Men’s Soccer Coaches’ Top 25 Poll for the seventh-straight week, the national office announced Tuesday. This is the final Top 25 poll for the regular-season. The NAIA National Championship Opening Round qualifiers and bracket will be revealed via live video selection show on Monday, Nov. 13 at Noon CDT by clicking HERE.
Top 25 Highlights (historical information dates back to 2000)
- Following a 7-0 win in the first round of the Southern States Athletic Conference Championship, the Crusaders have improved to a perfect 16-0-0 this year.
- William Carey collected 16 first place votes and 497 total points earning the program’s seventh No. 1 ranking ever.
- Defending National Champion Hastings (Neb.) currently sits at No. 7 in the poll, and is set to take on Concordia (Neb.) in the Great Plains Athletic Conference Tournament Championship Match.
- Bryan (Tenn.) rejoins the Top 25 for the fifth time in 2017, currently ranked No. 25.
- Rio Grande (Ohio) currently holds the record for the most No. 1 rankings all-time with 57 total.
- No. 6 Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) holds the record for the longest consecutively-ranked active school at 116-straight polls, dating back to the first installment of the Top 25 in 2007. Rio Grande (Ohio) is second on the list with 107-straight polls.
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 in the ballot are not considered “receiving votes".
- For the complete men’s soccer ratings calendar, click here.
2017 NAIA Men's Soccer Coaches' Top 25 Poll - No. 10 (Nov. 7)
| RANK | LAST WEEK | SCHOOL [1ST PLACE VOTES] | RECORD | TOTAL POINTS |
| 1 | 1 | William Carey (Miss.) [16] | 16-0-0 | 497 |
| 2 | 2 | Oklahoma Wesleyan [2] | 17-1-1 | 483 |
| 3 | 3 | Rio Grande (Ohio) | 14-1-1 | 465 |
| 4 | 4 | Missouri Valley | 13-2-3 | 444 |
| 5 | 5 | Baker (Kan.) | 14-3-2 | 426 |
| 6 | 7 | Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) | 12-2-0 | 411 |
| 7 | 6 | Hastings (Neb.) | 17-3-0 | 408 |
| 8 | 9 | Mobile (Ala.) | 11-3-2 | 384 |
| 9 | 10 | Georgia Gwinnett | 10-2-2 | 359 |
| 10 | 11 | Vanguard (Calif.) | 15-2-0 | 350 |
| 11 | 8 | Rocky Mountain (Mont.) | 16-1-2 | 340 |
| 12 | 12 | Central Methodist (Mo.) | 13-2-3 | 333 |
| 13 | 13 | St. Thomas (Fla.) | 11-1-1 | 301 |
| 14 | 13 | Corban (Ore.) | 15-1-4 | 270 |
| 15 | 17 | Columbia (Mo.) | 15-2-2 | 252 |
| 16 | 16 | Benedictine (Kan.) | 14-3-2 | 246 |
| 17 | 15 | Marymount (Calif.) | 13-3-2 | 244 |
| 18 | 19 | MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) | 12-3-3 | 237 |
| 19 | 18 | Campbellsville (Ky.) | 13-2-1 | 227 |
| 20 | 20 | Dalton State (Ga.) | 12-3-2 | 183 |
| 21 | 21 | Spring Arbor (Mich.) | 16-3-1 | 169 |
| 22 | 22 | Cumberland (Tenn.) | 13-2-2 | 161 |
| 23 | 23 | Wayland Baptist (Texas) | 15-2-1 | 149 |
| 24 | 25 | Madonna (Mich.) | 15-2-1 | 124 |
| 25 | NR | Bryan (Tenn.) | 14-5-0 | 123 |
Dropped From Top 25: Reinhardt (Ga.)
Others Receiving Votes: Southwestern Christian (Okla.) 59; UC Merced 50; Concordia (Neb.) 48; Cardinal Stritch (Wis.) 42; William Woods (Mo.) 35; Westmont (Calif.) 34; Reinhardt (Ga.) 33; Keiser (Fla.) 9; Houston-Victoria (Texas) 6; Southern Oregon 4
