Welcome to both the final week of the regular season and — for some — conference tournament week.
Division I women’s lacrosse enters this final week of April after an unusual occurrence in the Nike/USA Lacrosse Division I Women’s Top 20. Well, unusual when comparing this week’s ranking to weeks past.
The trend this season was a continuous shakeup of teams outside the top 10. With so many upsets and the growing parity of women’s lacrosse, this weekly practice sometimes became a weekly chore as we parsed through the previous week’s results.
Things were different this week. At this point, it seems like you can write North Carolina’s name into No. 1 in ink. The other non-movers rest between Nos. 7-20.
But Nos. 2-6 were shaken up after Northwestern, Syracuse and Duke all suffered losses. Boston College, which lost to North Carolina in March but topped Syracuse last weekend, is back to No. 2. Maryland, which earned at least a share of the Big Ten’s regular season title after beating Northwestern, is No. 3.
Northwestern, Syracuse and Duke then fall in line from Nos. 4-6.
There’s potential for more movement next week after the Atlantic 10 tournament concludes and the ACC tournament runs through the semifinal round on Sunday.
NIKE/USA LACROSSE
DIVISION I WOMEN’S TOP 20
April 25, 2022 |
W/L |
Prev |
Next |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1 |
North Carolina |
15-0 |
1 |
4/29 vs. Pitt/Louisville winner (ACC quarterfinal) |
|
2 |
Boston College |
14-2 |
5 |
4/29 vs. Virginia Tech (ACC quarterfinal) |
|
3 |
Maryland |
14-1 |
6 |
5/6 vs. TBD (Big Ten semifinal) |
|
4 |
Northwestern |
13-3 |
2 |
5/6 vs. TBD (Big Ten semifinal) |
|
5 |
Syracuse |
13-4 |
3 |
4/29 vs. No. 18 Virginia (ACC quarterfinal) |
|
6 |
Duke |
15-2 |
4 |
4/29 vs. Notre Dame (ACC quarterfinal) |
|
7 |
Stony Brook |
12-2 |
7 |
4/25 at Yale |
|
8 |
Loyola |
15-1 |
8 |
4/28 vs. Navy |
|
9 |
Florida |
11-4 |
9 |
4/27 vs. Jacksonville |
|
10 |
Denver |
14-1 |
10 |
4/27 vs. Colorado |
|
11 |
James Madison |
12-4 |
11 |
4/30 at Drexel |
|
12 |
Princeton |
10-3 |
12 |
4/27 at Columbia |
|
13 |
USC |
12-3 |
13 |
4/30 vs. UC Davis |
|
14 |
Rutgers |
13-3 |
14 |
4/28 at Ohio State |
|
15 |
Stanford |
10-6 |
15 |
5/5 vs. Colorado/Oregon winner (Pac-12 semifinal) |
|
16 |
UConn |
13-2 |
16 |
4/29 at Georgetown |
|
17 |
UMass |
15-2 |
17 |
4/28 vs. Davidson/Duquesne winner (A10 semifinal) |
|
18 |
Virginia |
8-8 |
18 |
4/29 vs. No. 5 Syracuse (ACC quarterfinal) |
|
19 |
Michigan |
10-5 |
19 |
4/30 vs. No. 3 Maryland |
|
20 |
Richmond |
14-3 |
20 |
4/29 vs. Saint Joseph's/George Washington winner (A10 semifinal) |
Also considered (alphabetical order): Army, Arizona State, Jacksonville, Johns Hopkins, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Temple, Virginia Tech, Yale
Nike/USA Lacrosse Rankings
Division I Men | Division I Women
Division II Men | Division II Women
Division III Men | Division III Women
HOT
North Carolina (no change)
The Tar Heels earn a “hot” distinction after making abundantly clear what might already have been pretty clear to start. North Carolina is the unquestioned top team in women’s lacrosse after thoroughly dominating Duke 18-4 last weekend, and even though we’re more than a month away from Memorial Day Weekend, the Tar Heels are most certainly the favorites.
Boston College (+3)
One week after a loss to Duke dropped Boston College down from No. 2 to No. 5, the Eagles are back up to No. 2 after a gritty 15-13 win over Syracuse in front of 4,507 fans in Chestnut Hill. BC led by five goals early in the fourth quarter and withstood a late Syracuse rally to hang on.
Maryland (+3)
Maryland thoroughly dominated Northwestern to earn at least a share of the Big Ten’s regular season crown. It was an all-around great performance in the 15-9 win, though Libby May’s seven goals were a deciding factor.
The Terps led 14-6 after three quarters and did exactly what they’ve done all season. They caused 15 turnovers, made it brutal for Northwestern on clear attempts (10-for-15) and won the battle on the ground (19-14). With Emily Sterling (16 saves) backing things up, Maryland is peaking.
NOT
Northwestern (-2)
Northwestern falls to No. 4 after experiencing firsthand the reasons why Maryland rose to No. 3. Jill Girardi scored three times, but the Wildcats mustered just nine goals on 38 shots with Maryland’s defense smothering the attack.
Northwestern can still earn a share of the Big Ten’s regular season conference title if Maryland falls to Michigan this weekend.
Syracuse (-2)
Meaghan Tyrrell and Emily Hawryschuk continue to post Tewaaraton-worthy seasons, but Syracuse didn’t have enough defense to keep Boston College at bay. Kimber Hower made five saves (which, to be fair, was one more than BC’s Rachel Hall), and the defense allowed BC to shoot 53.6 percent.
Duke (-2)
One week after perhaps the biggest statement of 2022, Duke took a step back after getting blasted by North Carolina. But regular goalie Sophia LeRose didn’t play in the 18-4 loss, and Kennedy Everson, Chase Henriquez and Shaye Fitzpatrick combined for just six saves in her stead. That doesn’t necessarily excuse the team’s offensive showing (four goals on just 18 shots), but it might help explain how the Blue Devils tied a season-high with 18 goals allowed.