2023 NAIA Softball Coaches’ Top 25 PRESEASON Poll (November 2, 2022)
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Oklahoma City remained at No. 1 after claiming its 11th NAIA Softball National Championship last season. The Stars earned all 18, first-place votes, followed by national championship runner-up Mobile (Ala.). Science & Arts (Okla.), Southeastern (Fla.) and Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) rounded-out the top five. College of Idaho made the largest move since the postseason edition in June, up nine spots to No. 13. Midland (Neb.) and Cumberlands (Ky.) are the only two schools that were new to the poll since the 2022 postseason Top 25.
Poll Methodology
- The poll was voted upon by a panel of head coaches representing each of the conferences and the Continental Athletic Conference (Independents).
- 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.
- For the complete Top 25 calendar, click here.
2022 NAIA Softball Coaches’ Top 25 PRESEASON Poll (November 2, 2022)
| RANK | LAST WEEK | SCHOOL [1st Place Votes] | RECORD | FINAL POINTS |
| 1 | 1 | Oklahoma City [18] | 54-6 | 498 |
| 2 | 2 | Mobile (Ala.) | 52-4 | 482 |
| 3 | 3 | Science & Arts (Okla.) | 53-10 | 464 |
| 4 | 4 | Southeastern (Fla.) | 52-13 | 442 |
| 5 | 5 | Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) | 54-6 | 430 |
| 6 | 6 | Indiana Wesleyan | 54-10 | 424 |
| 7 | 7 | Oregon Tech | 50-13 | 410 |
| 8 | 13 | Central Methodist (Mo.) | 42-7 | 372 |
| 9 | 9 | Tennessee Wesleyan | 37-9 | 357 |
| 10 | 12 | Southern Oregon | 49-14 | 355 |
| 11 | 8 | Grand View (Iowa) | 46-12 | 334 |
| 12 | 11 | William Carey (Miss.) | 48-11 | 331 |
| 13 | 22 | College of Idaho | 43-17 | 285 |
| 14 | 17 | Georgia Gwinnett | 36-20 | 276 |
| 15 | 15 | Our Lady of the Lake (Texas) | 46-13 | 257 |
| 16 | 16 | Columbia (Mo.) | 35-12 | 244 |
| 17 | 19 | Marian (Ind.) | 40-13 | 225 |
| 18 | 20 | Coastal Georgia | 39-14 | 219 |
| 19 | 14 | Eastern Oregon | 43-17 | 218 |
| 20 | 25 | Campbellsville (Ky.) | 38-18 | 208 |
| 21 | 23 | William Jessup (Calif.) | 39-15 | 151 |
| 22 | RV | Midland (Neb.) | 38-12 | 131 |
| 23 | 10 | Webber International (Fla.) | 42-24 | 120 |
| 24 | NR | Cumberlands (Ky.) | 35-16 | 119 |
| 25 | 21 | Saint Xavier (Ill.) | 39-8 | 94 |
Dropped from the Top 25: Madonna (Mich.), Lindsey Wilson (Ky.)
Others Receiving Votes: Ottawa (Kan.) 79, Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) 67, Texas A&M Texarkana 64, Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) 64, Bellevue (Neb.) 56, Cottey (Mo.) 35, Aquinas (Mich.) 31, St. Mary of the Woods (Ind.) 22, Mount Mercy (Iowa) 14, Mount Vernon Nazarene (Ohio) 10, Vanguard (Calif.) 8, Friends (Kan.) 4, Oklahoma Panhandle State 3, Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) 3, Rio Grande (Ohio) 3.
