Tachikara-NAIA Volleyball Coaches? Top 25 Poll ? No. 1
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Biola (Calif.) tops the first regular-season edition of the 2015 Tachikara-NAIA Volleyball Coaches’ Top 25 Poll, the national office announced Tuesday. The second regular-season edition will be released on Tuesday, Sept. 15.
Top 25 Highlights (historical information dates back to 2000):
• Biola claims the No. 1 spot for the first time in program history, dating back to 2000. The Eagles claimed 12-of-18 possible first-place votes and 492 total points. No. 2 Viterbo (Wis.) garnered the remaining six first-place votes.
• Biola (Calif.), which has been ranked among the top 10 in 42-consecutive polls, hold the longest active streak in the Top 25 at 112-straight. Columbia (Mo.) is next with 101-consecutive mentions.
• Four newcomers joined the Top 25 this edition: No. 20 Montana Tech, No. 21 Westmont (Calif.), No. 24 Great Falls (Mont.) and No. 25 Doane (Neb.). None of these teams were ranked in 2014.
• Twelve of the 21 NAIA volleyball conferences are represented in the poll. The Great Plains Athletic Conference leads all leagues with five ranked programs – No. 4 Midland (Neb.), No. 12 Northwestern (Iowa), No. 15 Dordt (Iowa), No. 19 Hastings (Neb.) and No. 25 Doane (Neb.)
• Former member Fresno Pacific (Calif.) has the most No. 1 appearances with 70, followed by National American (S.D.) with 33.
• Biola, Concordia (Calif.), Northwestern (Iowa) and Texas at Brownsville were ranked among the top 10 in every edition in 2014.
• Only one program has been able to maintain the No. 1 ranking for an entire season, with Fresno Pacific accomplishing the feat in 2004, 2008 and 2009.
Poll Methodology
• The poll was voted upon by a panel of head coaches representing each of the conferences and the Association of Independent Institutions.
• 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 ratings) 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 appears on.
• Teams that receive only one point in the ballot are not considered “receiving votes”
• For the complete Top 25 calendar, click here.
| RANK | LAST WEEK^ | SCHOOL (1ST PLACE VOTES) | 2015 Record | TOTAL POINTS |
| 1 | 2 | Biola (Calif.) (12) | 8-0 | 492 |
| 2 | 4 | Viterbo (Wis.) (6) | 9-0 | 487 |
| 3 | 3 | Missouri Baptist | 9-1 | 467 |
| 4 | 9 | Midland (Neb.) | 9-0 | 447 |
| 5 | 7 | Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) | 10-3 | 420 |
| 6 | 5 | Rocky Mountain (Mont.) | 10-4 | 409 |
| 7 | 1 | Park (Mo.) | 3-2 | 404 |
| 8 | 6 | Eastern Oregon | 6-1 | 397 |
| 9 | 16 | Southern Oregon | 9-0 | 360 |
| 10 | 8 | Vanguard (Calif.) | 6-4 | 353 |
| 11 | 18 | Evangel (Mo.) | 9-0 | 323 |
| 12 | 12 | Northwestern (Iowa) | 7-2 | 315 |
| 13 | 10 | Columbia (Mo.) | 4-4 | 303 |
| 14 | 20 | Coastal Georgia | 9-1 | 280 |
| 15 | 25 | Dordt (Iowa) | 7-1 | 263 |
| 16 | 11 | Georgetown (Ky.) | 5-1 | 233 |
| 17 | 15 | Madonna (Mich.) | 8-3 | 232 |
| 18 | 17 | Indiana Wesleyan | 8-2 | 231 |
| 19 | 22 | Hastings (Neb.) | 7-2 | 225 |
| 20 | NR | Montana Tech | 11-2 | 187 |
| 21 | RV | Westmont (Calif.) | 6-2 | 177 |
| 22 | 21 | Grand View (Iowa) | 6-3 | 156 |
| 23 | 19 | Wayland Baptist (Texas) | 9-3 | 141 |
| 24 | NR | Great Falls (Mont.) | 11-3 | 131 |
| 25 | NR | Doane (Neb.) | 8-4 | 96 |
Dropped from the rankings: Davenport (Mich.) (No. 13), College of Idaho (No. 14), Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) (No. 23), Jamestown (N.D.) (No. 24).
Others receiving votes: Bellevue (Neb.) 92; The Master’s (Calif.) 86; College of Idaho 44; St. Thomas (Fla.) 40; St. Catharine (Ky.) 36; MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) 31; Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) 29; Cornerstone (Mich.) 25; Cardinal Stritch (Wis.) 17; Concordia (Neb.) 6; Jamestown (N.D.) 6; Davenport (Mich.) 3.
^Based off 2015 Preseason Coaches’ Poll (Aug. 18, 2015)
