CHARLOTTE – After dropping to No. 10 following a loss in the regular season finale to Itawamba two weeks ago, Northwest has soared back into the NJCAA Top 5 after a victory against then-No. 7 Jones College in last Saturday's MACJC Semifinals.

Northwest checks in at No. 4 overall, trailing Saturday's MACJC Championship opponent Mississippi Gulf Coast, second-ranked Lackawanna (Pa.) and third-ranked Garden City (Kan.). The Rangers are ranked for the 63rd consecutive poll dating back to 2015, with 61 weeks spent ranked within the Top 10.

Several dominoes fell last weekend as five of the nation's Top 10 teams lost, further aiding in the Rangers' climb. Iowa Western jumped from 11th to No. 5 to round out this week's Top 5, while MACJC foes Jones, Hinds and East Mississippi are ranked 7th, 9th and 16th this week, respectively. 

Northwest will host the top-ranked Bulldogs on Saturday, Nov. 9 at 2 p.m. from Bobby Franklin Field. This will be the first matchup between the two programs since Nov. 7, 2015 when the Rangers defeated MGCCC 34-24 for the MACJC Championship. The all-time series is deadlocked at 19-19-2.

Live video and live stats will be available for the matchup at nwccrangers.com/watch.