B1G Shakeups in Nike/USA Lacrosse Division I Women's Top 20

Syracuse retains its top spot in the Nike/USA Lacrosse Division I Women’s Top 20 after taking down defending champion North Carolina, snapping the Tar Heels’ 29-game home winning streak dating back to 2021.

Northwestern is No. 2, and Denver stays put at No. 3. But upsets elsewhere in the Big Ten have led to shakeups throughout the Top 20.

On Wednesday, Rutgers upended Stony Brook at home. For an encore, Penn State upset Maryland, and Johns Hopkins beat Michigan on Thursday. The Nittany Lions, unranked to start the season, are now No. 12, and Johns Hopkins enters at No. 20.

 James Madison leaps to No. 4, and Notre Dame, Florida and Loyola all shift into the top 10.  

NIKE/USA LACROSSE
DIVISION I WOMEN’S TOP 20

Also considered (alphabetical order): Army (12-2), Marquette (13-1), Navy (12-3), Richmond (12-3), Rutgers (6-7), Villanova (10-4), Virginia Tech (8-7)

Nike/USA Lacrosse Rankings

Division I Men | Division I Women
Division II Men | Division II Women
Division III Men | Division III Women

HOT

Syracuse (no change)

UNC threw everything but the kitchen sink at Syracuse, but the Orange prevailed, handing the Heels their first home loss in two years. Is the Tar Heels’ six-year reign as ACC tourney champs next? Thirteen days feel like ages away, especially with No. 6 Boston College coming to the Salt City for Thursday’s regular-season finale.

Loyola (+3)

Credit to Jen Adams and the Greyhounds. The Dawgs lost their top three scorers and an All-American goalie to graduation last May. But they remain the class of the Patriot League in what two weeks ago looked like could be a three-team race between Loyola, Army and Navy. Instead, Loyola ran all over Army in a 19-5 win and is now the Patriot League’s lone unblemished team. Chase Boyle (4 G, 1 A) and Jillian Wilson (3 G, 2 A, 14 DC) proved they’ve taken the mantle.

Penn State (+7)

After a two-goal loss to Michigan last week, Penn State bounced back with a statement-making 12-7 win over Maryland. It was the third ranked win of the year for Penn State and its first over a top-10 opponent. Ashley Bowan’s 10-save performance shut down a Maryland offense that had hit double-digits in each game during its nine-game winning streak. The Nittany Lions draw another team that scored a big upset this week in Johns Hopkins, which beat Michigan Thursday.

NOT

Maryland (-2)

Maryland’s offense couldn’t get into a rhythm against Penn State, and the Terps saw their nine-game winning streak snapped. A date with rival No. 2 Northwestern looms.

Stony Brook (-4)

The Seawolves remain a good story each year — a non-power that regularly stands up to ACC and Big Ten opponents. Wednesday was not one of those nights. Rutgers entered the matchup having lost five straight, but the Seawolves defense had little answer for Cassidy Spilis, who scored four goals in the 12-7 Scarlet Knights win. Stony Brook came out firing in a 20-6 win over William & Mary on Saturday. But the loss, combined with the recent play of the teams ahead of them, drops the Seawolves out of the top 10 (for now).

Michigan (-3)

Michigan’s record tracked up until Thursday. The Wolverines’ losses to teams like Stony Brook, Northwestern, Denver and Maryland made sense. And they had beaten every team they should have. Thursday was an exception. Down 9-6 at the start of the fourth quarter, Michigan couldn’t mount a comeback at Johns Hopkins in a pivotal Big Ten matchup. The Wolverines yielded five goals to a Blue Jays offense led by freshman Ava Angello. Michigan now awaits its seed for the Big Ten championship tournament but is currently fifth behind Penn State and Johns Hopkins.

IN

Johns Hopkins (No. 20)

At 6-7, this choice may seem like recency bias. But Hopkins plays a gauntlet schedule. Save for a head-scratcher versus Drexel on March 4, the losses have been to ranked teams: Loyola, Penn, James Madison, Northwestern, Stony Brook and Maryland. The Blue Jays played Stony Brook and Maryland close, losing 12-9 to the Seawolves and 13-12 at Maryland. When comparing that to other teams in consideration, it seems Hopkins’ under-.500 record is more of a product of its schedule than its talent. Ditto for the other teams with double-digit wins. Are the Blue Jays peaking at the right time? A date with Penn State next weekend is intriguing.

OUT

Army (was No. 17)

Army has a ton of talent, and Michelle Tumolo is building something there. It will be fun to watch Black Knights freshman Brigid Duffy and Navy freshman Ava Yovino battle it out for the next three years. But right now, it appears to be Loyola’s conference, and the rest of the Patriot League is just living in it. A 19-5 loss to the clear favorite and the recent play of Hopkins has Army out of the Top 20 for at least this week. The Black Knights have Navy next week, adding another page to one of the more recent chapters of a storied rivalry between the two schools in all sports.

PREVIOUS RANKINGS

• Preseason

• Week 1: Feb. 13, 2023

• Week 2: Feb. 20, 2023

• Week 3: Feb. 27, 2023

• Week 4: March 6, 2023

• Week 5: March 13, 2023

• Week 6: March 20, 2023

• Week 7: March 27, 2023

• Week 8: April 3, 2023

• Week 9: April 10, 2023