Newberry Surging in USA Lacrosse Division II Men's Top 20

Another week of waiting for the NE-10 to start taking chunks out of each other in the war world that is their conference sees a lot of teams staying put in this week’s USA Lacrosse Division II Men’s Top 20.

That said, the distance and overreaction to the early results across the rest of the landscape set the tone for a tense beginning of the season. The SAC is not here for a good time; it’s here to win games. And win games is exactly what teams in the conference have done.

Limestone and Lenoir-Rhyne remain undefeated, with the Saints looking particularly frisky with their goal-scoring acumen. Wingate stumbled early, but is the Bulldogs’ win against Mercyhurst last week going to stay as impressive if the Hurst train keeps derailing? Coker has notched its third win in a row and risen up the ranks accordingly.

Montevallo clearly wanted to stay ranked and dropped a 26-spot on Tusculum on Sunday, while Newberry’s lower rank to start the season has been adjusted in lieu of the early start. The hierarchy is ever-changing and so are the ranks.

USA LACROSSE DIVISION II
MEN’S TOP 20

1. Lenoir-Rhyne, 4-0 (Prev: 1)
2. Limestone, 3-0 (Prev: 3)
3. Adelphi, 0-0 (Prev: 2)
4. Rollins, 2-0 (Prev: 4)
5. Mercy, 2-0 (Prev: 8)
6. Saint Anselm, 0-0 (Prev: 6)
7. Tampa, 2-1 (Prev: 5)
8. Wingate, 1-1 (Prev: 7)
9. UIndy, 2-1 (Prev: 11)
10. Bentley, 0-0 (Prev: 12)
11. Mercyhurst, 0-2 (Prev: 9)
12. Newberry, 2-0 (Prev: 17)
13. Seton Hill, 2-0 (Prev: 15)
14. Pace, 0-0 (Prev: 14)
15. Lander, 3-0 (Prev: 19)
16. Colorado Mesa, 0-0 (Prev: 13)
17. Frostburg State, 0-0 (Prev: 16)
18. Maryville, 2-0 (Prev: 18)
19. Florida Southern, 1-2 (Prev: 10)
20. Montevallo, 2-1 (Prev: 20)

Also considered (alphabetical order): Barton, Molloy, North Greenville

HOT

Lenoir Rhyne (no change)

Lenoir-Rhyne got a challenger to the throne this week as it paid a visit to Tampa for a top-five matchup. The Bears' defense was an absolute force, led as usual by Victor Powell. They allowed just nine shots total in the first half, and yet they still found themselves in a 4-0 hole early. But as great teams do, they were able to fight back take a halftime lead and then hold Tampa scoreless in the fourth quarter.

LRU has played a slate with plenty of ranked opponents, already notching wins against UIndy, Belmont Abbey and Barton, and has gotten a victory every time. Naturally, the next opponent is another heavyweight. Adelphi visits the Bears next week.

Newberry (+5)

The Wolf Pack has started strong with blowout wins against Lynn and Mount Olive. We’re talking 38 goals combined and just 12 goals allowed in those first two contests. The Canadian influence is strong with Ontario natives Scott Reed and Zach Thompson providing an effective un-deux coup de poing — or one-two punch. Up next for Newberry this week is a trip to Emmanuel and then a home dance against Tusculum.

NOT

Mercyhurst (-2)

It’s been a rough start for the boys from Erie. They fell to 0-2 this week with a one-goal loss to UIndy and lost the opener against Wingate by seven goals. Things can always get a bit rough when there’s a coaching change, particularly when a coach the caliber of Chris Ryan departs, so it’s not unexpected that Mercyhurst is off to a bumpy start. They have a chance to notch their first win of the year against Wilmington next week.

Florida Southern (-9)

The Mocs are plummeting down the table thanks to back-to-back losses to Montevallo and Limestone. The Limestone loss is not solely responsible for the precipitous drop — it’s more of an overcorrection for not dropping them lower last week. It’s still early, and Florida Southern definitely has a chance to turn it around with winnable games against Flagler and Belmont Abbey on the horizon, but if they drop one of those and then lose to Anderson the next week, they won’t be in the Top 20 any longer.