EDMOND, Okla. -- Nebraska-Kearney is the unanimous No. 1 pick in the first regular season NCAA Division II wrestling rankings of the season, with the defending champion Lopers capturing all eight first-place votes in the Division II Wrestling Coaches Association poll that was released Wednesday.

UNK -- which won its second Division II title last year -- finished with 160  points in balloting of head coaches from around the country to easily claim the top spot, while only three points separated the next three teams.

Seven-time Division II champion Central Oklahoma moved up one spot from its preseason position by earning 140 points to come in second, two points ahead of St. Cloud State (Minn.) and just three ahead of Upper Iowa.  Newberry (S.C.) is fifth in the poll with 131 points.

Rounding out the top 10 is Grand Canyon (Ariz.), Division II newcomer Notre Dame (Ohio), Findlay (Ohio) Minnesota State-Mankato and Ouachita Baptist (Ark.).  Making their first appearance in the poll is West Liberty (W.Va.) at No. 12, Shippensburg (Pa.) at No. 19 and Ashland (Ohio) at T-No. 20.

UNK has five individuals ranked in the top eight at their respective weight, led by defending champion Raufeon Stotts as the No. 1 pick at 149 pounds.

TOP 10 TEAMS

Rank            School (State)  Points  Preseason Ranking
1.              Nebraska-Kearney         160     1st
2.              Central Oklahoma         140     3rd
3.              St. Cloud State (Minn.)  138     2nd
4.              Upper Iowa      137     7th
5.              Newberry (S.C.) 131     4th
6.              Grand Canyon (Ariz.)     121     5th
7.              Notre Dame (Ohio)       117     8th
8.              Findlay (Ohio)   109     6th
9.              Minnesota State-Mankato 83      13th
10.             Ouachita Baptist (Ark.) 78      9th

TOP RANKED WRESTLERS
125 - Jesse Hillhouse, Colorado State-Pueblo
133 - Trevor Franklin, Upper Iowa
141 - Daniel Owenbey, North Carolina-Pembroke
149 - Raufeon Stotts, Nebraska-Kearney
157 - Dillon Bera, Wisconsin-Parkside
165 - Joey Davis, Notre Dame (Ohio)
174 - Mike Williams, North Carolina-Pembroke
184 - Adam Walters, Findlay (Ohio)
197 - Joe Brandt, Ashland (Ohio)
285 -Matt Meuleners, Northern State (S.D.)

Click here for NCAA Div. II Team and Individual Rankings