Oct. 26, 2010

Contact: Chad Waller, NAIA Director of Sports Information & Media Services, cwaller@naia.org

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Rio Grande (Ohio) knocks off Simon Fraser (B.C.) from the top of the rankings as the RedStorm capture the No. 1 spot in the eighth edition of the NAIA Men’s Soccer Coaches’ Top 25 poll, the national office announced Tuesday. The RedStorm had a lock on the No. 2 position for the previous six weeks, but after a 2-1 overtime road win at No. 7 Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) on Oct. 23, they vaulted past Simon Fraser.

No. 22 Missouri Valley is appearing in its first ranking, dating back to 2000. No. 24 Houghton (N.Y.) claims its first Top-25 ranking since Sept. 26, 2007 (No. 24). No. 23 Park (Mo.) enjoys its first action in the poll since Oct. 6, 2009, when it was No. 11. The fourth newcomer is No. 25 Texas at Brownsville. The Scorpions  last checked in the 2010 Preseason Top 25 Poll at No. 16.

Four teams fell from the ranks this week: No. 18 Saint Xavier (Ill.), No. 19 Lindenwood (Mo.), No. 24 McKendree (Ill.) and No. 25 Warner (Fla.).

Rio Grande holds the slimmest of leads in the points column, edging out Simon Fraser 643-642. The RedStorm captured 12 first-place votes and remained within 15 points of Simon Fraser in the previous six polls. Rio Grande is 16-0 on the season and has posted 11 shutouts on defense. In statistical rankings, the RedStorm are in the top-five nationally in all major offensive statistical categories, including second in assists per match (3.9) and goals per match (4.6).

No. 2 Simon Fraser, who enjoyed the No. 1 ranking for the previous six weeks, tallied 642 total points and 11 first-place votes. The Clan is one of five undefeated teams and holds a 14-0 mark, including a 23-1 record dating back to last season. The 1-0 win on Oct. 23 against Western Washington set a school record for consecutive wins in a season with 14. Simon Fraser faces Northwest Nazarene (Idaho) on Thursday before playing Montana State-Billings on Saturday.

With 611 total points, No. 3 Notre Dame (Ohio) has held strong all season. The Falcons are 16-0 and have been ranked in the third spot for six-straight weeks. Notre Dame owns a 69-6 scoring advantage and has blanked 11 opponents, including the first seven teams on the schedule. The Falcons attempt to wrap up a perfect regular season with a single match this week on Saturday at Point Park (Pa.).

No. 4 Hastings (Neb.) gathered 590 total points and held rank for the sixth consecutive poll. On a scoring tear recently, the Broncos have averaged 6.0 goals in their last four matches and stands at 14-0 overall on the year. With three matches remaining during the regular season, Hastings holds a 1.5 game lead for first-place in the Great Plains Athletic Conference. The Broncos have a busy week starting with Concordia (Neb.) on Tuesday, followed by Northwestern (Iowa) on Thursday and Mount Marty (S.D.) on Saturday.

Maine-Fort Kent moves up one position to No. 5. The leap was made possible courtesy of a 9-0 shutout against Fisher (Mass.) on Oct. 24 and a loss by then-No. 5 William Jewell (Mo.) to unranked Missouri Valley on Oct. 23. With 549 total points, the Bengals sport their highest ranking this year. Maine-Fort Kent is 14-0 overall and 10-0 in Sunrise Conference action. Ranked first in every major national statistical category, Maine-Fort Kent averages 5.7 goals per match and 4.7 assists per match. The Bengals close out the regular season with contests against Saint Joseph (Vt.) on Saturday and Vermont Tech on Sunday.

The Golden State Athletic Conference (GSAC), Mid-South Conference (MSC) and the Southern States Athletic Conference (SSAC) lead all conferences, independents and unaffiliated groups with three schools apiece in the Top 25. Three other conferences each land a pair of teams in the poll.

The poll was voted upon by a panel of head coaches representing each of the conferences, independents and unaffiliated groups. The ninth regular season Coaches’ Top 25 Poll will be announced on Nov. 2.

For more information on NAIA men’s soccer, please click here.

NOTES: Rio Grande (Ohio) has been ranked in the top 10 for the last 20 straight polls, dating back to the start of the 2009 season… Notre Dame (Ohio) and Rio Grande are tied for the most wins (16) in the country… Overall, there are five undefeated programs… In nine polls this year (including Preseason Top 25), there have been 48 teams ranked in the Top 25… Rio Grande surpasses Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) for the most No. 1 mentions since 2000 as the RedStorm now hold 32 top rankings… Overall, there have been 14 different teams to claim the No. 1 spot during that span: after Rio Grande, Lindsey Wilson is second (31) and is followed by Bethel (Tenn.) (11), Auburn Montgomery (Ala.) (9), Simon Fraser (B.C.) (6), Azusa Pacific (Calif.) (5) and Concordia (Calif.) (5)… Lindsey Wilson and Simon Fraser now hold the distinction of being consecutively ranked the longest among active schools -- 41 straight polls, dating back to the 2007 Preseason Top 25 Poll… Maine-Fort Kent is next in line with 37 straight rankings, followed by Rio Grande (35) and Azusa Pacific and Notre Dame are tied at 28… Since 2000, two teams have rattled through the entire season ranked No. 1 --- Bethel in 2009 and Rio Grande during the 2004 season.

2010 NAIA Men’s Soccer Coaches’ Top 25 Poll – (Regular Season No. 8)

Others receiving votes:

Concordia University (Ore.) 102; Saint Thomas University (Fla.) 81; McKendree University (Ill.) 67; Bethel University (Tenn.) 56; Illinois Institute of Technology 55; Davenport University (Mich.) 39; Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (Fla.) 27; Baker University (Kan.) 23; Benedictine College (Kan.) 22; Campbellsville University (Ky.) 20; University of Great Falls (Mont.) 16; Southern Polytechnic State University (Ga.) 9; Aquinas College (Mich.) 8; Bellevue University (Neb.) 7; Lambuth University (Tenn.) 6; Bethel College (Ind.) 5; Warner University (Fla.) 5; Biola University (Calif.) 3; Hannibal-LaGrange College (Mo.) 1; Friends University (Kan.) 1; Fresno Pacific University (Calif.) 1; Freed-Hardeman University (Tenn.) 1; Warner Pacific College (Ore.) 1; Saint Xavier University (Ill.) 1; Olivet Nazarene University (Ill.) 1; Oklahoma City University 1; John Brown University (Ark.) 1; Northwood University (Fla.) 1; Mount Vernon Nazarene University (Ohio) 1; Roberts Wesleyan College (N.Y.) 1; Columbia College (Mo.) 1

* Submitted by the raters and reflecting the overall record through games played Oct. 24