This was the first truly wild week of DII baseball this season, one where the national top 25 didn’t come out and utterly dominate. The defending champion Tampa Spartans lost a series to Georgia Southwestern, Pittsburg State’s unbeaten streak came to an end and teams like Cal State Monterey Bay and West Florida dropped a few games.
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There was a shakeup in the Power 10 rankings this week, with 19-2 North Greenville capturing the No. 1 spot. Don’t worry Spartans fans, you’re still in the top three, but more on that in a bit. This was a very tough week to rank, as there are truly about 30 teams worth considering in DII baseball right now for 15 spots.
But someone has to try. These DII baseball Power 10 rankings are mine and mine alone in an attempt to combine selection metrics with the eye test and produce a ranking that fall somewhere in between the coaches and media polls and regional rankings. While the top five or six seemed locked in, you can expect some movement throughout March in the bottom half of the rankings, especially with conference play underway.
DII baseball Power 10 rankings through March 8
No. 1 North Greenville | Previous: 2. The Southeast Region is the deepest and toughest in DII baseball, and the Trailblazers may very well be the best of that bunch. They are building a strong resume with a win over Central Missouri and Rollins, a 2-1 series win over nationally ranked Francis Marion and sweeps over Georgia Southwestern and Mount Olive, which are two tournament contenders. So, the Trailblazers aren’t simply winning but winning meaningful games. They are also extremely balanced, sitting in the top 10 in batting average and runs scored with a pair of starting pitchers that have allowed just 12 earned runs in 59.1 innings and a lights out bullpen.
No. 2 Pittsburg State | Previous: 3. The Gorillas actually lost a game this weekend, but bounced back to win the series against a surprisingly solid Emporia State team. The offense is just too much to handle right now: They are second in DII in batting average (.382), first in on-base percentage (.498) and third in scoring (13.1 runs per game). The problem for the MIAA is the Gorillas pitching has also been a nightmare, posting the third-best ERA in DII (3.10) and fifth-best strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.04). Throw in a potential player of the year in Dagen Brewer and this team is as tough as it gets.
No. 3 Tampa | Previous: 1. Truth be told, the Spartans could very likely have stayed at No. 1. They dropped two games in the three-game series against Georgia Southwestern, but both of those losses were by a score of 2-1. The pitching on this team has been very strong, posting a combined 2.89 ERA and 1.16 WHIP, both of which are top-5 marks in DII. The hitting has been just fine as well — seven of their everyday starters in the lineup are hitting over .300, each with posting an on-base percentage well over .400. DII baseball is a grind, and games will be lost. The SSC and South Region still runs through Tampa.
No. 4 Catawba | Previous: 4. Again, DII baseball teams will lose games, so the fact that Catawba dropped one this weekend is not the end of the world, especially when it was a tightly contested ball game against a Carson-Newman team that is much better than its record may suggest. The Indians have picked up two series in a row that will loom large in the SAC race, with this weekend’s win against the Eagles and that big series win against Lenoir-Rhyne a week ago. As always, Catawba is a team that wins games by doing the little things very well and out-pitching its competition: Its pitching staff has a combined 3.79 ERA and 1.43 WHIP with just over a strikeout per inning during its 16-4 start.
No. 5 Central Missouri | Previous: 5. The Mules dropped the opener against Missouri Western, but bounced back to thump the Griffons 29-3 in the final two games. The Mules follow the pattern set by the rest of the top five, and that is balance in every aspect of the game. As a team, they are hitting .353 with a .968 OPS and 211 runs scored. On the bump, Greyson Chappel, when healthy, is a pitcher-of-the-year candidate, while Sawyer Allen (2-0, 1.65 ERA, 0.97 WHIP) has been solid through five starts. Their .980 fielding percentage is third-best in the MIAA, trailing the leader by just 0.003 percentage points. Kyle Crookes has another contender for Cary on his hands.
No. 6 Colorado Mesa | Previous: 7. The Mavericks continue their ascent up the Power 10 rankings, sweeping New Mexico Highlands and extending their winning streak to 17 games. What is a bit uncharacteristic for the team that has won 13 consecutive RMAC regular-season titles and nine of the last 11 RMAC tournament titles is that the offense doesn’t have to carry the load. The Mavericks rank in the top 15 in ERA, their 3.93 and 1.41 WHIP near impossibilities in the thin air of Colorado. The pitching staff has allowed only nine home runs, a number some of the Mavericks’ lineups of yore would hit in a doubleheader. That’s not to take away from the lineup — they will be just fine, but how good the pitching has been is definitely the story in Grand Junction.
No. 7 Grand Valley State | Previous: 8. In a week where many top teams dropped a game or two, the Lakers just kept winning, extending their winning streak to nine with two games remaining on Monday in the Missouri S&T series. Infielder Evan Morrison has been one of the best in DII thus far, hitting .544 with a 1.448 OPS with 30 runs scored. He leads an offense that is hitting .350 with a .967 OPS and scoring 11.4 runs per game. It has been the pitching that has led the way, posting a 2.67 ERA and 1.14 WHIP both of which are top-5 marks in DII. This is a strong team and remains my pick to win the Midwest Region.
No. 8 Point Loma | Previous: First five out. This was a tough spot. Cal State Monterey Bay holds a big West Region tiebreaker over Point Loma. However, the Sea Lions extended their winning streak to 14 games this past weekend, and hopefully, we’ll get to see an Otters/Sea Lions rematch down the road. Infielder Josiah Rodriguez is building off a strong freshman year in 2025, leading the offense hitting .409 with 22 runs scored and 22 RBI. Derek Silva has been a true ace, now 5-0 with a 0.79 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 40 strikeouts in 34.1 innings pitched.
No. 9 Young Harris | Previous: First five out. This is a huge jump for the Mountain Lions, especially considering they have a brutal two weeks ahead against Francis Marion and UNC Pembroke. This offense has been absolutely bananas, leading to a 13-game winning streak and 18-3 start. They lead DII in a slew of categories, hitting .394 as a team with an absurd 1.176 OPS, 319 runs scored and 57 home runs. Seven everyday bats in their lineup are hitting .400 or better while Keypher Contreras, Jackson Morgan and Kade Smallwood each have double-digit home runs and at least 30 RBI. Whether the pitching holds up once the heart of Conference Carolinas play kicks in — well that is a big question mark, but right now, this team deserves top-10 consideration.
No. 10 UT Tyler | Previous: 9. There are two ways to look at UT Tyler’s first month of the season. One is that the Patriots have merely split the past two weekend series. The other is to realize that have played an absurdly difficult schedule — the second-toughest of any Power 10 team, as a matter of fact — and have split the past two weekends with other potential tournament teams. These Patriots are playing good baseball and have yet to lose a weekend series. Don’t give too much credence in these losses, especially when they’ve piled up 16 wins already.
First five(ish) out (in alphabetical order)
There were some interesting series this past week that had some shocking results, and quite a few teams suffered multiple losses. I can’t emphasize enough that a loss here or there does not matter as much in college baseball as other sports, so it was very tough to differentiate the first five out from the next five. This week, we have a few teams for your consideration.
- Angelo State. The Rams have played UT Tyler, St. Mary’s (TX) and Lubbock Christian and still sit atop the LSC standings with UT Tyler. Yes, they split with Lubbock Christian this weekend. No, it doesn’t make them any worse than they were last week.
- Cal State Monterey Bay. That was a tough split with Cal State LA, losing the final two games by a total of three runs. The Otters are likely No. 11 if these teams were ranked and still a true contender to take the West.
- Lenoir-Rhyne. The Bears had a tie due to darkness this weekend, but had split with Mars Hill prior to that. If you aren’t paying attention to Seth Christmas, you should be. He’s on a five-game hitting streak, with four consecutive multi-hit games and three home runs over that span.
- Minnesota State. It is very fair to ask why I have the Mavericks this high. They have lost to some tournament-bound competition they need to show they can beat and sit at an underwhelming 11-5. Sometimes you throw out metrics. The Mavericks have a ton of returning talent and of their 16 games, nary a one has been played close to home. Let’s see what they look like this weekend in their Mankato debut.
- North Georgia. The Nighthawks had a midweek loss to Young Harris but rebounded with a three-game sweep of Clafin in which they scored 59 runs. That’s not too shabby.
- Seton Hill. The Griffins are 9-3 and had a tough swing through their Florida spring break trip, beating Northwood and Minnesota State while losing to Rollins and Ashland. They return north with some tricky matchups in Glenville State and Point Park that will decide if they stick around this spot or not.
- West Chester. The Golden Rams took three of four from Frostburg State this weekend, which was my pick to win the MEC. They hurled three shutouts in those victories, one of which was the second no-hitter of Julian Costa’s career. This has been my pick to win the Atlantic Region from Day 1.
- West Florida. This is a little unfair. The Argos had a brutal week, playing six games in five days, and did go 4-2 to show for it. But the two straight losses to Trevecca Nazarene to close the week is what dropped them just a hair out of the Power 10.
Just missed: Augustana (SD), Belmont Abbey, Francis Marion, Millersville, Rollins, West Alabama, Wingate
