Many teams ranked in the preseason or first in-season editions of the Nike/US Lacrosse Division III Women's Top 20 have stumbled out of the gate, or out of the ranking altogether.
Franklin & Marshall, Hamilton, Washington & Lee and William Smith have seen significant drops after surprising and/or significant early defeats. That has allowed unbeaten York, Salisbury and Mary Washington, among others, to take advantage.
The last of the idle teams will get underway this week. No. 1 TCNJ, No. 2 Middlebury and No. 3 Gettysburg remain in their same positions as last week following wins.
March 5, 2018 |
W/L |
Prev |
Next |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | TCNJ | 2-0 | 1 | 3/6 at Cabrini, 3/10 at Dickinson |
| 2 | Middlebury | 2-0 | 2 | 3/10 at Connecticut College |
| 3 | Gettysburg | 3-0 | 3 | 3/11 at Washington & Lee |
| 4 | York | 2-0 | 4 | 3/7 Messiah |
| 5 | Trinity | 0-0 | 5 | 3/6 vs. Stevens, 3/10 at Williams |
| 6 | Salisbury | 3-0 | 7 | 3/6 Rowan, 3/10 at Washington College |
| 7 | Tufts | 1-0 | 10 | 3/7 at Endicott, 3/10 MIT |
| 8 | Mary Washington | 5-0 | 11 | 3/9 Roanoke, 3/10 at So. Virginia |
| 9 | St. John Fisher | 0-0 | 13 | 3/5 at Colorado College |
| 10 | Ithaca | 2-0 | 14 | 3/8 Scranton |
| 11 | Cortland | 1-0 | 15 | 3/6 at Union, 3/10 Franklin & Marshall |
| 12 | Catholic | 2-1 | 19 | 3/8 No. 20 Meredith, 3/10 Rowan |
| 13 | Hamilton | 0-1 | 6 | 3/7 at No. 19 Wm. Smith, 3/10 No. 16 Colby |
| 14 | Marymount | 4-0 | NR | 3/7 at Arcadia, 3/10 Penn State-Abington |
| 15 | Amherst | 1-0 | NR | 3/6 Keene St., 3/10 Bowdoin |
| 16 | Colby | 0-1 | 12 | 3/10 at No. 13 Hamilton, 3/11 vs. No. 19 Wm. Smith at Hamilton |
| 17 | Claremont-Mudd-Scripps | 3-1 | 20 | 3/7 Rhodes, 3/10 Albion |
| 18 | Geneseo | 1-0 | NR | 3/7 at St. Lawrence |
| 19 | William Smith | 0-1 | 8 | 3/7 No. 13 Hamilton, 3/10 Nazareth, 3/11 at No. 16 Colby |
| 20 | Meredith | 5-1 | NR | 3/8 at No. 12 Catholic, 3/10 at CNU |
Also considered (alphabetical order): Colorado College, Dickinson, Franklin & Marshall, Messiah, Stevens, Washington College, Washington & Lee, Wesleyan
Nike/US Lacrosse Rankings
Division I Men | Division I Women
Division II Men | Division II Women
Division III Men | Division III Women
HOT
Catholic (+7)
The Cardinals forgot about their 0-1 start to knock off then-No. 16 St. Mary's and Christopher Newport last week, each on the road. Nicolette Crisalli led six Catholic scorers in their Top-20 matchup at the Seahawks, netting seven goals and handing out two assists. The Cardinals finally open their home slate this week against surprising No. 20 Meredith.
NOT
William Smith (-11)
The Herons struggled against SUNY-Geneseo to open the season Feb. 28, falling on the road to the previously unranked Knights. William Smith surrendered six straight goals to open the second half and could not overcome 19 turnovers in the loss. Its March 3 game vs. SUNY-Fredonia was postponed, leaving the Herons extra time to prep for a tough upcoming weekend.
IN
Marymount
Perhaps high for a debut, the Saints claim something many preseason favorites in this ranking do not: wins. Four of them, without a loss. And though they may have come against foes that lack national name recognition, Marymount has won in mostly convincing fashion. Eleven players have found the back of the net to date, and only Widener has finished with a four-goal spread.
Meredith
The Avenging Angles enter despite coming off a loss, their first, in their most recent outing. Note that they had the ball late with a chance to tie then-No. 11 Mary Washington yesterday in a 12-11 defeat. Meredith won four league games on the road before edging Lynchburg in overtime to start the season 5-0.
OUT
Washington & Lee, Franklin & Marshall
Both ampersand teams endured another loss last week, at least temporarily exiting a Top 20 that still includes late-starting squads. Each team faces a ranked opponent before next Monday.