KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Dalton State women's golf will begin the 2026-27 season ranked No. 3 in the NAIA Women's Golf Coaches' Top 25, the national office announced Friday.
 
The Lady Roadrunners received three first-place votes and 435 total points in the preseason rating. Dalton State was one of four programs to receive at least one first-place vote.
 
Defending national champion SCAD (Ga.) earned 11 of the possible 17 first-place votes and opens the season at No. 1 with 457 points. Keiser (Fla.) received two first-place votes and ranks second with 441 points, just six points ahead of Dalton State.
 
British Columbia, which collected the remaining first-place vote, begins the season at No. 4. Marian (Ind.) rounds out the top five, followed by Crossroads League rival Indiana Wesleyan at No. 6.
 
The preseason poll includes 26 teams after Coastal Georgia and Rocky Mountain (Mont.) tied for the No. 25 position with 81 points apiece.
 
The preseason ranking is the first of three NAIA women's golf ratings scheduled for the fall. Additional polls will be released Oct. 16 and Oct. 30. Four spring ratings will follow beginning April 2, with the final rating scheduled for May 13.
 
The final poll will help determine the at-large selections for the 2027 NAIA Women's Golf National Championship, which will be held at Dalton Golf & Country Club in Dalton, Ga.
 
2026-27 NAIA Women's Golf Preseason Coaches' Top 25

Rank	Institution	First-Place Votes	Points
1	SCAD (Ga.)	11	457
2	Keiser (Fla.)	2	441
3	Dalton State (Ga.)	3	435
4	British Columbia	1	420
5	Marian (Ind.)		391
6	Indiana Wesleyan		386
7	Cumberlands (Ky.)		356
8	Embry-Riddle (Ariz.)		350
9	William Carey (Miss.)		349
10	Southeastern (Fla.)		345
11	Texas Wesleyan		333
12	Truett McConnell (Ga.)		286
13	Lindsey Wilson (Ky.)		262
14	Cumberland (Tenn.)		259
15	Pikeville (Ky.)		245
16	Lewis-Clark State (Idaho)		238
17	Milligan (Tenn.)		234
18	Loyola (La.)		227
19	Oregon Tech		155
20	Taylor (Ind.)		148
21	OUAZ (Ariz.)		123
22	Bethel (Ind.)		117
23	Morningside (Iowa)		101
24	Midway (Ky.)		82
T-25	Coastal Georgia		81
T-25	Rocky Mountain (Mont.)		81

 
Receiving Votes: Arizona Christian, Grace (Ind.), Mount Mercy (Iowa), Park (Mo.), Science & Arts (Okla.), Tennessee Southern and Victoria (B.C.).
 
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