There were some exciting games this past week – No. 3 USC's 11-10 overtime win over No. 12 Northwestern, No. 8 Duke’s 12-10 triumph over Stanford in the Patriot Cup in Texas and No. 15 Denver’s 11-10 rout of Louisville in triple overtime, just to name a few – but there wasn’t much movement in this week’s Nike/US Lacrosse Division I Women’s Top 20.
The Pioneers moved up one spot with their undefeated 4-0 record following their win over the Cardinals – their best start in program history.
But it was the previously unranked James Madison that made its debut this week after an 11-10 victory over UConn for its third straight win following a season-opening loss to the reigning NCAA champion North Carolina – by just two goals. The Dukes’ solid effort against the Tar Heels has carried into each subsequent game, making them a team to watch this season.
The Ivy League kicked off competition this weekend – Penn defeated Delaware 9-7, Princeton dominated Temple 19-3 and Cornell topped Villanova 18-6 – so each Top 20 team has now played at least one game in 2017.
Feb 20, 2017 |
W-L |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | North Carolina | 3-0 | 1 | 2/25 at No. 2 Maryland |
| 2 | Maryland | 2-0 | 2 | 2/25 vs. No. 1 North Carolina |
| 3 | USC | 2-0 | 3 | 2/24 at No. 5 Florida |
| 4 | Stony Brook | 2-0 | 4 | 2/21 at Marist |
| 5 | Florida | 0-1 | 5 | 2/24 vs. No. 3 USC |
| 6 | Syracuse | 3-0 | 6 | 2/25 vs. UMass |
| 7 | Penn State | 3-0 | 7 | 2/22 at Duquesne |
| 8 | Duke | 4-0 | 8 | 2/18 vs. No. 18 Stanford |
| 9 | Penn | 1-0 | 9 | 2/25 at No. 13 Johns Hopkins |
| 10 | Princeton | 1-0 | 10 | 2/25 at Virginia |
| 11 | Colorado | 3-0 | 11 | 2/26 vs. UC Davis |
| 12 | Northwestern | 2-2 | 12 | 3/3 vs. Syracuse |
| 13 | Johns Hopkins | 2-0 | 13 | 2/22 at Loyola |
| 14 | Notre Dame | 4-1 | 14 | 2/23 at No. 19 Elon |
| 15 | Denver | 4-0 | 16 | 2/24 vs. UC Davis |
| 16 | Towson | 1-2 | 15 | 2/22 at Georgetown |
| 17 | Cornell | 1-0 | 16 | 2/25 vs. No. 7 Penn State |
| 18 | James Madison | 3-1 | NR | 2/25 vs. High Point |
| 19 | Elon | 4-0 | 19 | 2/23 vs. No. 14 Notre Dame |
| 20 | Stanford | 1-2 | 18 | 2/21 vs. St. Mary's (Calif.) |
Also considered (alphabetical): Albany, Louisville, Ohio State, Virginia, Virginia Tech
NIKE/US LACROSSE RANKINGS
DIVISION I MEN | DIVISION I WOMEN
DIVISION II MEN | DIVISION II WOMEN
DIVISION III MEN | DIVISION III WOMEN
HOT
Denver (+1)
After a 2-2 start the past two seasons, the Pioneers are moving the needle. They play three more non-conference games before Big East play with the biggest test to come March 3 against a fellow Colorado team on the rise. Can they continue their hot start?
NOT
Stanford (-2)
An upset loss at the hands of then-unranked Denver, followed by a four-goal loss to Duke, doesn’t bode well for the Cardinal after graduating Lucy Dikeou, who was one of the top all-around midfielders in college lacrosse.
NEW
James Madison
The Dukes break into the Top 20 after netting consecutives wins over UConn, Virginia Tech and Michigan. James Madison’s 9-6 rout of Virginia Tech gets an extra nod after the Hokies upset Boston College for their first ACC win since 2012.
OUT
Boston College
The Eagles are struggling early this season and haven’t won a conference game yet. They lost to ACC rivals Syracuse and Virginia Tech by 10 and six goals, respectively.