KANSAS CITY, MO – After claiming a Red Banner in 2022 and most recently in 2025 on the heels of returner Jaynie Halterman, the Taylor (Ind.) Trojans will open the new year as the top pick in the Preseason Coaches’ Top 25 Rating.
The second and third place finishers at the 2025 championship hold their places in the preseason rating as Milligan (Tenn.) returns the number nine, 41, 46 and 102 finishers and adds five to its roster, while Dordt (Iowa) returns its top six athletes.
Rounding out the Top 5 are College of Idaho and Cornerstone (Mich.) who both moved up from their championship finishes by one and two spots, respectively, while both teams return a core group on their rosters.
The Preseason Top 25 is the first of six ratings on the schedule in 2026, including four regular-season ratings – Sept. 24, Oct. 8, Oct. 15, and Oct. 29 – and the final rating, Nov. 10, to determine at-large qualifiers for the 2026 NAIA National Championship, Nov. 20 in Vancouver, Washington.
| RANK | INSTITUTION [FIRST-PLACE VOTES] | POINTS |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Taylor (Ind.) [16] | 557 |
| 2 | Milligan (Tenn.) [1] | 533 |
| 3 | Dordt (Iowa) [2] | 532 |
| 4 | College of Idaho [1] | 504 |
| 5 | Cornerstone (Mich.) | 460 |
| 6 | Marian (Ind.) | 452 |
| 7 | The Master's (Calif.) | 449 |
| 8 | Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) | 441 |
| 9 | Indiana Wesleyan | 403 |
| 10 | Southern Oregon | 383 |
| 11 | Cumberlands (Ky.) | 363 |
| 12 | St. Francis (Ill.) | 356 |
| 13 | Benedictine (Kan.) | 324 |
| 14 | Oklahoma City | 317 |
| 15 | Grace (Ind.) | 302 |
| 16 | Saint Mary (Kan.) | 286 |
| 17 | Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) | 278 |
| 18 | Kansas Wesleyan | 272 |
| 19 | Carroll (Mont.) | 247 |
| 20 | Eastern Oregon | 224 |
| 21 | Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) | 174 |
| 22 | Aquinas (Mich.) | 172 |
| 23 | Montreat (N.C.) | 167 |
| 24 | Rio Grande (Ohio) | 166 |
| 25 | SCAD (Ga.) | 85 |
Receiving Votes: Mount Mercy (Iowa), Governors State (Ill.), Montana Tech, Missouri Baptist, IU East (Ind.), Saint Francis (Ind.), Morningside (Iowa), Our Lady of the Lake (Texas), Trinity Western (B.C.), William Carey (Miss.), Arizona Christian, Evangel (Mo.), St. Ambrose (Iowa)
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