LAKEWOOD, CO- The Week 1 NFCA/GoRout Division II Top 25 poll released on Tuesday, and after a scorching 10-2 start to the season, the Cougars have entered the rankings at #21. With wins over now #5 Cal State East Bay and #15 Concordia Irvine, CCU has set themselves up well for the beginning of RMAC play. 

The Cougars began the season at the Concordia Kickoff Classic in Irvine, taking on a plethora of teams from the West Coast and Hawaii. Taking down Dominican and the now #5 ranked Pioneers on day one, they swept the competition away with wins of 3-0 and 8-3. After a split on day two, they closed the tourney 4-1 with a 5-0 shutout victory over Menlo. 

After falling to then #3 Western Washington a week ago, CCU responded with a thrilling 3-2 win in extra innings over Northwest Nazarene. They continued the extra inning magic to start the D2 West Coast Challenge in Lake Elsinore, California, defeating Cal State Dominguez Hills and the now #15 ranked Golden Eagles 13-11 and 4-3 in extras. They continued their perfect run through the tournament with a 12-2 run-rule victory over Vanguard, and a 9-7 win over Cal State Monterey Bay. They closed the 5-0 tournament with a near perfect game from Elyse McMullin in the circle, as she faced just one more batter than the minimum in an 8-0 blanking of Cal State San Bernardino. 

With a pair of wins over ranked opponents to start the year, CCU will now prepare for their RMAC opening series at Home against New Mexico Highlands February 20-21 as the #21 ranked team in the country. 

NFCA Poll