KANSAS CITY, Mo. – After splitting two games last week at the Southern States Athletic Conference Tournament, the Southern Polytechnic State University women's basketball team slipped two places to No. 29 nationally with 21 points in this season's 12th NAIA Division I Women's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 Poll that was released on Wednesday.

Southern Polytechnic received 34 points for 27th place in last week's national coaches' poll and just five points the week before to rank No. 33. Southern Poly picked up six points in each of the two previous polls, tying for 31st on Feb. 18 after being alone at No. 31 on Feb. 11. The Hornets were 30th for three consecutive weeks, earning 14 points on Feb. 4, 13 on Jan. 28 and 14 on Jan. 21. SPSU was also 31st with seven points on Jan. 14 and did not appear in the Jan. 7 rating. Southern Poly received six points in the Dec. 10 poll, tying for No. 33, and was rated 20th nationally with 95 points in the preseason.

The NAIA coaches' polls are voted upon by a panel of head coaches representing each of the NAIA Division I conferences, independents and unaffiliated groups. The entire poll can be viewed at naia.org.

Vanguard University, despite suffering its first loss the season last week, remained on top of the most recent poll with 250 points and nine first-place votes, and is 26-1 overall. Freed-Hardeman University stays at No. 2 with 242 points, the other first-place vote and a 32-1 overall record and is followed by Westminster College of Utah (234 points, 23-2 overall), Campbellsville University (226, 30-3) and Oklahoma City University (218, 22-4).

The Hornets are 1-1 this season against teams ranked in the current Top 25 and 3-2 versus squads listed in the latest rating. SPSU has wins over 20th-ranked Xavier University (La.), No. 26 Bethel University (Tenn.) and 33rd-rated Martin Methodist College. The losses, both coming on the road, were to No. 24 the University of Mobile and No. 28 Loyola University (La.)

Along with Southern Poly, other members of the SSAC appearing in the current poll are Mobile (64 points, 23-8 overall), Bethel (51, 21-10), Loyola (31, 21-11) and Martin Methodist (nine, 23-9).

The Hornets, who captured an automatic bid to the 2014 NAIA Division I national tournament as the outright SSAC Eastern Division champions, are 23-7 overall. The NAIA Division I Women's Basketball National Championship event starts on Wednesday, March 19 in Frankfort, Ky.