Iowa starts 2015 still ranked atop USA Today/NWCA Division I Coaches Poll

Manheim, Pennsylvania — Holiday tournaments kept movement minimal in the first USA Today/NWCA Division I Coaches Poll released for 2015. Iowa maintained its spot at No. 1 after weekend wins over Rutgers and Ohio State.

The Hawkeyes (7-0) picked up 11 out of the 12 possible first-place votes, while Minnesota (6-0) remained second. Iowa won the 52nd Midlands Championships, setting a new team-scoring record in the process on Dec. 29-30.

Penn State (5-0) moved up one spot to No. 3, switching places with Cornell (6-0), which sits just four points behind the four-time defending NCAA champions. Penn State won the Southern Scuffle on Jan. 1-2.

The only other move in the Top 25 came lower in the poll as Northwestern (8-2) moved up one spot to No. 18, swapping spots with Oregon State (3-0).

The Big Ten has 10 of the 25 schools ranked, followed by the ACC, with four schools (Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh, Virginia and N.C. State) in the top 25.

[eztable width=”600″]
Rank,Team (First),Record,Points,Conference,Previous
1,Iowa (11),7-0,299,Big Ten,1
2,Minnesota,6-0,282,Big Ten,2
3,Penn State (1),5-0,270,Big Ten,4
4,Cornell,6-0,266,EIWA,3
5,Missouri,12-0,260,MAC,5
6,Virginia Tech,4-1,239,ACC,6
7,Ohio State,4-3,225,Big Ten,7
8,Oklahoma State,3-1,219,Big 12,8
9,Pittsburgh,4-2,200,ACC,9
10,Edinboro,6-2,191,EWL,10
11,Lehigh,7-3,173,EIWA,11
12,Nebraska,4-1,166,Big Ten,12
13,Illinois,6-1,158,Big Ten,13
14,Iowa State,4-1,141,Big 12,14
15,Michigan,2-1,140,Big Ten,15
16,Virginia,5-2,115,ACC,16
17,Rider,6-1,104,EWL,17
18,Northwestern,8-2,95,Big Ten,19
19,Oregon State,3-0,89,Pac-12,18
20,Wisconsin,5-1,71,Big Ten,20
21,Wyoming,4-2,62,WWC,21
22,N.C. State,7-2,43,ACC,22
23,Rutgers,9-1,37,Big Ten,23
24,Old Dominion,3-2,28,MAC,24
25,Bucknell,4-1,17,EIWA,25
[/eztable]
Dropped out: None
Others Receiving Votes: Stanford 5, Purdue 4, Ohio 1