Another week of data has answered some questions about the potential finish of this years teams as well as left some still in a wave of uncertainty. We will take a dive into this past weeks results as well as support some of the algorithms logic in placing teams in the ranking hierarchy.
Let’s start with the NAIA. This division boasts the tightest top 4 of any division with early season favorites Menlo and Vanguard in a log jam with Ottawa Arizona and Grand View. The team with the best record in the division, Indiana Tech at 18-1, has risen to #6 in the formula and is being beat up in the algorithm based on schedule strength. Ottawa Arizona has emerged on top after a convincing win over Vanguard on Saturday and a win against Menlo the previous week. Ottawa Arizona’s only loss this season was on the road to Park who is rated at #9.
Vanguard and Menlo have played against some of the top teams in the country this season. Menlo hung close to Stanford but lost in three sets. Vanguard has a similar experience with Stanford but has beaten UC Merced and Benedictine Mesa. They also took a set from Concordia Irvine but got blow out by CSU Northridge.
Ottawa Arizona has beaten both Menlo and Vanguard as well as Master’s, Benedictine Mesa, and Cal Lutheran. The recent wins against Menlo and Vanguard has propelled OUAZ to the top of the division. Grand View has also been at the top of their game this season with the one loss to #5 William Penn. They have also beaten William Penn, #11 Jamestown twice and #8 Missouri Baptist, #12 Saint Xavier, and D2 Quincy. 6’4″ opposite Jordan Moses has been lights out for the Spirit with 51 kills over the last three key games. Emery Outin, the 6’5″ sophomore outside hitter from Laval, France, had 17 kills against Vanguard on Saturday.
Mark your calendars for March 12th (OUAZ vs Menlo) and March 18th (OUAZ vs Vanguard) for games that will surely decide the best in the NAIA prior to the tournament.
In D3 action, Springfield went back on top of the division in our rankings this week after falling back to #2 after their loss to Lasell. Vassar is in the #2 slot despite their loss this week to St. John Fisher. Marymount is at #3, sporting the best record in the division at 16-1. North Central’s win over Loras propelled them to #5 in the division, just behind Rutgers. SUNY New Platz and Carthage continue their climb back to the top after slow starts, both sporting sizable win streaks.
For the D1/D2 level, Long Beach is our clear number 1. Both matches that they lost went to three sets, the first against Penn State and the second against UCLA. They have beaten UCLA, USC, Loyola, Stanford, and NJIT and algorithm has them as a clear #1. The top 6 are all super tight with UCLA, USC, Penn State, Ball State and Hawaii all within one rating point. Lewis and McKendree continue to battle for the top spot between D2 teams and Lewis holds just a .1 rating point edge this week. Lewis is #11 in the country overall and McKendree is #13.
Lewis holds the highest rank among D2 teams with #11 in the country. For NAIA teams, Ottawa Arizona comes in at #28 in the country overall, and for D3, Springfield is #33 overall in the country. Our biggest challenge is collect enough data on interdivision games to provide a complete integrated ranking of all divisions.
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