Box Score Courtesy of NAIA
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – For the fifth-straight edition, Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) headlines the NAIA Division I Women's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 Poll, the national office announced Tuesday. The Lions were the unanimous pick, garnering all 10 first-place votes and 250 total points. The sixth regular-season installment is slated to release onFeb. 28.
Top 25 Highlights (historical information dates back to 1999-2000)
Following a 2-0 week that improved the club to 25-0 overall, Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) finds itself in a familiar spot – atop the NAIA Division I Women's Basketball Coaches Top 25 Poll. The Lions have held the perch since Dec. 6.
The No. 1 ranking marks the 23rd all-time for Freed-Hardeman, which trails only former member Union (Tenn.) (53), Oklahoma City (49) and Vanguard (Calif.) (41) for most since the start of the 1999-2000 season.
The Lions have five games remaining on their quest for a third American Midwest Conference title in the last four seasons, including a Tuesday night showdown with No. 10 Lyon (Ark.). Since joining the league at the start of the 2013-14 campaign, Freed-Hardeman owns an 84-5 record in conference play.
Only Freed-Hardeman and MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) have held the No. 1 ranking this season. The Pioneers are currently out of the Top 25.
In addition to Freed-Hardeman, only No. 7 Oklahoma City and No. 21 The Master's (Calif.) held their position from the fourth installment.
Previous No. 2 and unbeaten Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) suffered its first loss of the season on Feb. 3 at Carroll (Mont.), 64-57. The Warriors, who dropped two spots to No. 4, have rebounded to win three-straight and the Frontier Conference regular-season crown.
Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) (24-0) – the only other unbeaten team in addition to Freed-Hardeman – takes over the No. 2 position after spending the last three polls at No. 5. The Blue Raiders have five games remaining on their schedule, including a Feb. 23date with No. 5 Shawnee State (Ohio). That game has strong potential to decide the league regular-season title as the two teams currently rest within 0.5-games of each other.
No. 4 Vanguard (Calif.) rounds out the top five. The Lions have won 20-straight en route to a 24-1 overall record and 12-0 mark in league play.
No. 13 Wayland Baptist (Texas), No. 14 Bethel (Tenn.) and No. 17 John Brown (Ark.) each saw three-spot jumps in this week's poll, which is the largest positive movement.
No. 24 Central Methodist (Mo.) suffered the farthest fall for teams that remained in the rankings. The Eagles have lost three-straight – all to unranked teams.
Martin Methodist (Tenn.), which claimed the No. 25 ranking this week, is the edition's lone newcomer. The RedHawks have won seven-straight and are in second-place in the Southern States Athletic Conference standings. Martin Methodist was last ranked on Feb. 2, 2016 (No. 25).
Eight of 10 conferences are represented in the poll. The Association of Independent Institutions and Gulf Coast Athletic Conference are the two leagues without representation.
The Mid-South Conference leads all conferences with five teams in the poll – Lindsey Wilson, Shawnee State, No. 9 Campbellsville (Ky.), No. 19 Cumberland (Tenn.) and No. 22 Pikeville (Ky.).
In total, 30 teams have been ranked in the Top 25 this season.
2016-17 NAIA Division I Women's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 Poll – No. 5 (Feb. 14)
|
RANK
|
PRVS
|
SCHOOL (1ST PLACE VOTES)
|
Record
|
TOTAL POINTS
|
|
1
|
1
|
Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) (10)
|
25-0
|
250
|
|
2
|
4
|
Lindsey Wilson (Ky.)
|
24-0
|
242
|
|
3
|
5
|
Vanguard (Calif.)
|
24-1
|
232
|
|
4
|
2
|
Lewis-Clark State (Idaho)
|
24-1
|
228
|
|
5
|
6
|
Shawnee State (Ohio)
|
25-2
|
215
|
|
6
|
3
|
Westmont (Calif.)
|
21-3
|
208
|
|
7
|
7
|
Oklahoma City
|
22-2
|
206
|
|
8
|
10
|
Baker (Kan.)
|
22-4
|
188
|
|
9
|
8
|
Campbellsville (Ky.)
|
23-4
|
187
|
|
10
|
9
|
Lyon (Ark.)
|
21-3
|
184
|
|
11
|
12
|
Benedictine (Kan.)
|
20-6
|
165
|
|
12
|
13
|
Columbia (Mo.)
|
22-4
|
164
|
|
13
|
16
|
Wayland Baptist (Texas)
|
21-3
|
152
|
|
14
|
17
|
Bethel (Tenn.)
|
19-7
|
143
|
|
15
|
11
|
Montana State-Northern
|
18-7
|
141
|
|
16
|
18
|
Our Lady of the Lake (Texas)
|
19-7
|
119
|
|
T17
|
19
|
Biola (Calif.)
|
19-6
|
115
|
|
T17
|
20
|
John Brown (Ark.)
|
18-7
|
115
|
|
19
|
15
|
Cumberland (Tenn.)
|
15-7
|
114
|
|
20
|
22
|
Montana Western
|
20-5
|
100
|
|
21
|
21
|
The Master's (Calif.)
|
18-6
|
97
|
|
22
|
23
|
Pikeville (Ky.)
|
18-8
|
71
|
|
23
|
24
|
Lindenwood-Belleville (Ill.)
|
17-7
|
69
|
|
24
|
14
|
Central Methodist (Mo.)
|
18-8
|
68
|
|
25
|
RV
|
Martin Methodist (Tenn.)
|
20-6
|
60
|
Dropped from the Top 25: Loyola (La.) (No. 24)
Others receiving votes: Loyola (La.) 53; MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) 37; Talladega (Ala.) 26; Carroll (Mont.) 24; LSU Shreveport (La.) 17; Harris-Stowe State (Mo.) 7; William Woods (Mo.) 6; Clarke (Iowa) 5.
