With
the Tampa Spartans carrying an incredible 45-2
record headed into the postseason, the question isn’t who is the
top team in the D-II ranks headed into the postseason, but instead
who has the best chance of usurping the defending national
champions once it starts.
Despite
all the hullabaloo regarding Tampa’s near perfect record, Lander
and Minnesota State have been putting up amazing numbers as well.
With every win Lander adds to a new school record for victories, and
over the weekend the Bearcats captured their first-ever Peach Belt
Conference regular season championship.
The
third ranked Mavericks also look like they’re headed back to Cary
once again. MSU didn’t have any games over the weekend, but in a
midweek matchup with rival St. Cloud State, the Mavs swept the
Huskies which included a mercy rule, 10 run win.
Delta
State looks ready for a run at the national championship after
sweeping three games from West Florida. Down 5-0 in the bottom of the
ninth of the series opener, the Statesmen rallied for six runs for
the unbelievable win.
Three
teams streaking at the right time are Mount Olive, Arkansas Tech and
Southern Indiana. The Trojans have won 23 games in a row and captured
the Conference Carolinas regular season and conference championships.
The Wonder Boys have their own 22 win streak brewing and earned the
top seed for the upcoming Great American Conference Tournament by
capturing their first outright conference title since 1992. UMO and
ATU’s winning streaks almost make Southern Indiana’s 14 game
streak look minuscule in comparison.
Back
in the top 25 are Texas A&M Kingsville, Seton Hill and Florida
Southern. They edged out a host of teams which
included Millersville, St. Mary’s (Texas), Southern New Hamphire
and Central Missouri. If Lubbock Christian were eligible for the
postseason – they’re transitioning to D-II – the Chaps would
have been in the ratings mix this week around the 20-spot.
RK |
Prev. |
Team |
Mascot |
Overall |
Week |
1 |
1 |
Tampa |
Spartans |
45-2 |
3-0 |
2 |
2 |
Lander |
Bearcats |
43-6 |
4-0 |
3 |
3 |
Minnesota State |
Mavericks |
36-7 |
2-0 |
4 |
10 |
Delta St. |
Statesmen |
35-9 |
5-0 |
5 |
6 |
Mount Olive |
Trojans |
40-11 |
4-0 |
6 |
5 |
Chico State |
Wildcats |
35-9 |
2-1 |
7 |
7 |
St. Edward's |
Hilltoppers |
34-12 |
3-1 |
8 |
9 |
Colorado Mesa |
Mavericks |
34-9 |
3-1 |
9 |
4 |
West Florida |
Argonauts |
31-9 |
0-3 |
10 |
22 |
Arkansas Tech |
Wonder Boys |
41-8 |
5-0 |
11 |
19 |
Southern Indiana |
Screaming Eagles |
35-8 |
5-0 |
12 |
13 |
Columbus St. |
Cougars |
36-14 |
2-2 |
13 |
14 |
USC Aiken |
Pacers |
35-13 |
4-0 |
14 |
16 |
Lynn |
Fighting Knights |
33-13 |
0-3 |
15 |
11 |
Wilmington (DE) |
Wildcats |
31-7-1 |
5-2 |
16 |
15 |
Grand Valley St. |
Lakers |
27-11 |
3-0 |
17 |
25 |
Arkansas-Monticello |
Boll Weevils |
33-13 |
2-1 |
18 |
8 |
St. Cloud St. |
Huskies |
31-10 |
3-3 |
19 |
12 |
Southern Arkansas |
Muleriders |
34-16 |
2-2 |
20 |
21 |
Georgia College |
Bobcats |
32-12 |
4-0 |
21 |
18 |
Drury |
Panthers |
33-11 |
3-2 |
22 |
NR |
Texas A&M-Kingsville |
Javelinas |
33-14 |
4-0 |
23 |
NR |
Seton Hill |
Griffins |
36-14 |
5-0 |
24 |
24 |
Cal Poly Pomona |
Broncos |
30-13 |
1-2 |
25 |
NR |
Florida Southern |
Moccasins |
31-15 |
3-1 |