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Jonathan Bates | Off the Block associate editor
On the strength of their 14-match winning streak, Barton is the new No. 2 team in the Division II Coaches Poll.
No. 1 Lewis received all 10 first place votes this week, the ninth consecutive week they have done so.
The Flyers’ magic number is 1. Either a Lewis win (vs. Quincy, vs. Lindenwood) or Loyola loss (vs. Lindenwood, vs. Quincy) and the Flyers are the No. 1 seed in the MIVA Tournament. In other words, the only way Lewis is not the No. 1 seed in the MIVA Tournament is if Lewis loses both matches, and Loyola wins both matches. The Flyers hold the head-to-head tiebreaker based on matches won (2-0). Lewis can finish no worse than a No. 2 seed in the MIVA tournament.
No. 2 Barton is in first place in the ConfCarolinas standings by one match over second place King. The two teams play a crucial match on Friday. Barton is in good shape as they already swept the Tornadoes in Wilson in February. The tiebreaker is still TBD, but of course the Bulldogs do not want that to figure into the picture. It’s as simple as this for Bulldogs – win against King on Friday, and they are the No. 1 seed in the ConfCarolinas Tournament. Even Barton lost the match on Friday, they would still earn the tiebreaker if they forced the match to four game or #CincoSets. The worst possible seed for Barton is the No. 2 seed in the ConfCarolinas Tournament. After the King match, Barton travels to Lees-McRae on Saturday and then a non-conference match versus Coker next week.
No. 3 McKendree wraps up the regular season with matches at home against Ball State and Purdue-Fort Wayne. The Bearcats would be the No. 4 seed in the MIVA Tournament if they played today. McKendree is one match ahead of Ball State and Lindenwood. McKendree has the head-to-head tiebreaker over Lindenwood based on winning both head-to-head matches, so the easiest path to locking up the No. 4 seed and a first-round match at home would be to defeat Ball State. The Bearcats have already swept the Cardinals in Muncie, so if McKendree loses in four or in #CincoSets, they would also gain the head-to-head tiebreaker. In a three-way tie with Ball State and Lindenwood, the Bearcats would win the tiebreaker as long as they win at least one set versus Ball State.
No. 4 Concordia-Irvine is locked into either the No. 6 or No. 7 seed in the MPSF tournament. The Eagles travel to UCLA and Pepperdine to finish the regular season. Since Concordia-Irvine loses the head-to-head tiebreaker to Grand Canyon (4-3 games won), the Eagles need to finish ahead of the Lopes by at least one match. Grand Canyon hosts BYU and Stanford this week. The magic number for Concordia-Irvine is two – a combination of two Eagles wins/Lopes loses clinches the No. 6 seed for Concordia-Irvine.
No. 5 Lincoln Memorial is done wither regular season at 16-7 and hosts the IVA Tournament on April 12 and 13.
Charleston, King, Lindenwood, and UC San Diego each received one vote.
Both NCAA Division I and NCAA Division II men’s volleyball programs compete for the same national championship. The AVCA National Coaches Poll ranks the top 15 Division I-II men’s volleyball teams and is released each Monday during the regular season.
A national voting committee comprised of coaches from the more than 20 Division II teams determines the weekly rankings for the Division II National Coaches Poll.
Off the Block is a website that launched in 2011 and is the nation’s leader in college men’s volleyball coverage.
The Division II National Coaches Poll will be released on the Off the Block website every Tuesday during the regular season.
Off the Block Division II Coaches Poll
| Rank | Team | Record | Points | Previous | Trend |
| 1 | Lewis | 20-5 | 50 (10) | 1 | — |
| 2 | Barton | 20-3 | 35 | 3 | +1 |
| 3 | McKendree | 11-11 | 29 | 2 | -1 |
| 4 | Concordia-Irvine | 14-16 | 24 | 4 | — |
| 5 | Lincoln Memorial | 16-7 | 8 | 5 | — |
Others receiving votes: Charleston 1, King 1, Lindenwood 1, UC San Diego 1