Northwest hangs at No. 4 in AFCA Poll

With the three teams ahead of them all winning as well, Northwest Missouri State held on to its No. 4 ranking in the latest AFCA Division II Coaches' Top 25 Poll that came out Monday.

It's just the second time during Northwest's current eight-game win streak that the Bearcats haven't gained at least one spot in the poll.

After beating former No. 20 Emporia State 55-10, the Bearcats (9-1, 8-1) did pick up one first-place vote and remain the highest rank team both in the MIAA and Super Region 3.

Missouri Western (9-1, 8-1) stayed put at No. 11 after defeating Washburn 56-28.

The Bearcats and Griffons play each other Saturday at 2:30 p.m. in Maryville for the outright MIAA title.

Emporia State (8-2, 8-2) barely held on to its national ranking, dropping five spots to No. 25. Pittsburg State and Washburn both dropped out of the top 25, leaving the MIAA with only three ranked teams.

Washburn, Pitt State and Lindenwood are all grouped in the others receiving votes category.

All of the top eight spots in the poll are unchanged from last week, with No. 1 Colorado St.-Pueblo, No. 2 Winston Salem-St. and No. 3 New Haven (Conn.) forming the top three.

After Northwest, the top 10 continues with No. 5 Ashland, No. 6 Minnesota St.-Mankato, No. 7 Shippensburg (Pa.) and No. 8 Henderson State.

Midwestern State jumped Minnesota-Duluth go up to No. 9, while Duluth fell to No. 10 in front of Western.

Tuskegee (Ala.) made the biggest leap in the poll, up seven spots to No. 16 with their win over Miles (Ala.) which fell eight places to No. 23.

Valdosta State (Ga.) rose six spots to No. 18 with a win over Texas A&M Kingsville. West Texas A&M fell five spots to No. 17 after losing to Midwestern State.

No. 19 Indianapolis, No. 20 Missouri S&T, No. 21 Chadron St. (Neb.) and No. 24 Carson-Newman (Tenn.) are all new to the poll.

Along with Pittsburg State and Washburn, West Alabama and California (Pa.) dropped out.