Dalton State Soccer Team Voted Number One in NAIA
(dsroadrunners.com) KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A new king has ascended to the throne as Dalton State (Ga.) is ranked first in the NAIA Men’s Soccer Coaches’ Top 25 Poll. Dalton State then went out on Wednesday night and looked the part of the nation’s top ranked team as they beat Blue Mountain 3-0.
This marks the fifth different team who have held the position in the 2022 season, with all of them being the representatives in the Top Five. The Roadrunners capture 10 of the 18 first-place votes, Mid-America Christian (Okla.) getting seven, and Central Methodist (Mo.) being awarded the final vote. Reigning champion Keiser (Fla.) and runner-up Mobile (Ala.) wrap up the Top Five.
By The Numbers
This is the 81st NAIA Top 25 Coaches Poll to be released since the men’s soccer program has been eligible for national rankings. They have achieved a national ranking or received votes in 54 of the 81 polls. This is the highest ranking in school history. Previously, the highest ranking was #3 achieved on the last two top 25 polls released on October 5, 2022 and October 12, 2022.
Poll Methodology
- The poll was voted upon by a panel of head coaches representing each of the conferences, Association of Independent Institutions and Unaffiliated Groups.
- 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 in the ballot are not considered “receiving votes.”
| RANK | LAST | SCHOOL [FIRST-PLACE VOTES] | CONFERENCE | RECORD | FINAL POINTS |
| 1 | 3 | Dalton State (Ga.) [10] | Southern States | 10-0-3 | 487 |
| 2 | 1 | Mid-America Christian (Okla.) [7] | Sooner | 11-1-1 | 483 |
| 3 | 2 | Central Methodist (Mo.) [1] | Heart | 9-0-4 | 466 |
| 4 | 4 | Mobile (Ala.) | Southern States | 11-1-0 | 458 |
| 5 | 6 | Keiser (Fla.) | The Sun | 8-0-2 | 432 |
| 6 | 8 | Georgia Gwinnett | Continental | 9-1-1 | 399 |
| 7 | 7 | St. Thomas (Fla.) | The Sun | 6-0-3 | 398 |
| 8 | 9 | Bethel (Ind.) | Crossroads | 13-1-1 | 392 |
| 9 | 5 | Missouri Valley | Heart | 8-3-1 | 383 |
| 10 | 11 | MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) | Heart | 9-2-3 | 356 |
| 11 | 10 | Grace (Ind.) | Crossroads | 8-1-5 | 328 |
| 12 | 12 | William Carey (Miss.) | Southern States | 9-1-3 | 325 |
| 13 | 13 | University of Northwestern Ohio | Wolverine-Hoosier | 10-1-3 | 311 |
| 14 | 16 | Williams Baptist (Ark.) | American Midwest | 10-0-2 | 282 |
| 15 | 15 | Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) | Chicagoland | 12-1-1 | 280 |
| 16 | 20 | Oklahoma Wesleyan | Kansas Collegiate | 9-4-1 | 237 |
| 17 | 18 | Indiana Tech | Wolverine-Hoosier | 8-1-4 | 227 |
| 18 | 17 | Life (Ga.) | Southern States | 8-2-1 | 226 |
| 19 | 21 | Columbia (Mo.) | American Midwest | 7-3-3 | 211 |
| 20 | 22 | Warner Pacific (Ore.) | Cascade | 14-0-0 | 205 |
| 21 | 25 | Cumberland (Tenn.) | Mid-South | 7-1-3 | 144 |
| 22 | 23 | Rio Grande (Ohio) | River States | 8-3-2 | 133 |
| 23 | RV | Corban (Ore.) | Cascade | 14-1-0 | 131 |
| 24 | RV | Viterbo (Wis.) | Continental | 12-1-0 | 91 |
| 25 | RV | Hastings (Neb.) | Great Plains | 10-1-1 | 86 |
