Box Score KANSAS CITY - In all the years of athletics at Freed-Hardeman University, the school has never had a program ranked No. 1 in the NAIA.

That changed today.

Coming off a 66-54 win over then-No. 2 Union (Tenn.) University that was coupled with a 22-point home loss by then-No. 1 Oklahoma City, the Freed-Hardeman Lady Lions earned the school's first ever No. 1 national ranking in the latest coaches poll released on Monday, Jan. 16.

The Lady Lions (15-2), winners of 15 straight, took 11 of 12 first-place votes in the poll to jump from No. 3 into the top spot. FHU's only two losses were forfeits due to a paperwork miscue that cost the team its first two wins of the year.

FHU's previous highest ranking was No. 2, a position FHU held for nine polls during the 2005-06 season.

Oklahoma City (15-1) and Union (16-2) each dropped one spot to No. 2 and No. 3 respectively while No. 4 Westmont (Calif.) and No. 5 Langston (Okla.) held their spots from the previous week.

Freed-Hardeman and Union were the only TranSouth Conference teams in the top 25 this week as Lyon, last week's No. 25, dropped one spot out despite a road loss to Union.

The Lady Lions will have to defend the new ranking three times this week including two road games against Trevecca Nazarene (Tenn.) and Martin Methodist (Tenn.), two places that have given FHU trouble in the past.