KANSAS CITY, Mo. — For the fourth week in a row, Southern Oregon earns the No. 1 spot in the nation. The Raiders claimed 19 first-place votes for a total of 529 final points in this week’s NAIA Softball Coaches’ Poll Top 25. The 2019 national champions hold a current record of 38-2 and are No. 1 in five different statistical categories. Rounding out the top five was Oklahoma City, Science & Arts (Okla.) Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) and Central Methodist (Mo.).

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 rating) 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 appear on.
  • Teams that receive only one point on the ballot are not considered “receiving votes”
  • The frequency of the polls is bi-weekly. This policy was approved by the National Administrative Council (NAC) prior to the 2016-17 academic season. This change allows raters the opportunity to consider a larger body of work between rating periods..

2021 NAIA Softball Coaches’ Top 25 – Poll 4 (April 21, 2021)

RANK LAST WEEK SCHOOL [1st PLACE VOTES] RECORD FINAL POINTS
1 1 Southern Oregon [19] 38-2 529
2 4 Oklahoma City 29-3 508
3 3 Science & Arts (Okla.) 36-4 488
4 2 Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) 35-5 486
5 6 Central Methodist (Mo.) 37-4 449
6 5 Oregon Tech 32-6 436
7 10 Indiana Wesleyan 33-5 401
8 9 Hope International (Calif.) 22-2 396
9 11 Columbia (Mo.) 25-5 393
10 8 Georgia Gwinnett 25-9 380
11 14 Morningside (Iowa) 35-4 350
12 7 Marian (Ind.) 32-10 346
13 12 William Carey (Miss.) 33-8 329
14 19 Saint Xavier (Ill.) 19-0 327
15 16 Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) 21-3 290
16 13 Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) 31-9 257
17 24 Campbellsville (Ky.) 33-11 242
18 20 Central Baptist (Ark.) 23-9 204
19 NR Milligan (Tenn.) 27-5 199
20 18 Warner (Fla.) 25-13 176
21 25 Ottawa (Kan.) 31-5 172
22 15 Truett McConnell (Ga.) 28-12 165
23 23 College of Idaho 30-12 156
24 21 Cumberlands (Ky.) 37-13 152
25 17 Reinhardt (Ga.) 34-10 116

Dropped Out: Mobile (Ala.)

Receiving Votes: Grand View (Iowa) 96, Mobile (Ala.) 91, Midland (Neb.) 55, Valley City State (N.D.) 42, Texas A&M Texarkana 36, Indiana Southeast 22, Taylor (Ind.) 14, Vanguard (Calif.) 12, Concordia (Neb.) 11, St. Francis (Ill.) 9, Webber International (Fla.) 9, Cottey (Mo.) 7, Simpson (Calif.) 4, Mid-America Christian (Okla.) 3, Rio Grande (Ohio) 3, and Madonna (Mich.) 3