Maryland, Virginia Make Gains in USA Lacrosse Division I Women's Top 20

The more things change, the more they stay the same. What’s the same in this week’s rankings? No. 1 Northwestern and No. 2 Boston College remain at the top. What’s changed?

Basically, everything else. For starters, Michigan moves into the top three for the first time in program history — a one-spot climb. At 8-0, the Wolverines have risen to every occasion and have yet to let in double-digit goals in a contest. Their 4.63 goals-allowed per game ranks first in Division I.

From there, it gets wild. No. 4 Virginia is up 11 after routing Richmond and upending now-No. 7 Notre Dame in South Bend. Maryland also jumps five spots to No. 5 after upsetting now-No. 6 James Madison, which entered the weekend No. 3. No. 10 Penn enters the top 10 for the first time.

No. 11 Johns Hopkins is up three after beating No. 12 Stony Brook, which upended No. 13 Syracuse Tuesday night. No. 19 Colorado is back in the Top 20, and No. 20 Fairfield makes its debut.

USA LACROSSE DIVISION I
WOMEN’S TOP 20

1. Northwestern, 7-1 (Prev: 1)
2. Boston College, 8-1 (Prev: 2)
3. Michigan, 8-0 (Prev: 4)
4. Virginia, 7-1 (Prev: 15)
5. Maryland, 6-1 (Prev: 10)
6. James Madison, 6-1 (Prev: 3)
7. Notre Dame, 5-2 (Prev: 6)
8. North Carolina, 5-2 (Prev: 7)
9. Loyola, 6-0 (Prev: 8)
10. Penn, 5-0 (Prev: 12)
11. Johns Hopkins, 7-2 (Prev: 13)
12. Stony Brook, 5-1 (Prev: 11)
13. Florida, 5-2 (Prev: 9)
14. Syracuse, 4-3 (Prev: 5)
15. Denver, 3-3 (Prev: 14)
16. USC, 6-2 (Prev: 17)
17. Yale, 5-0 (Prev: 18)
18. Princeton, 3-2 (Prev: 19)
19. Colorado, 5-2 (Prev: NR)
20. Fairfield, 5-1 (Prev: NR)

Also considered (alphabetical order): Brown (5-1), Clemson (5-2), Drexel (4-3), Navy (6-1), Harvard (4-0), Penn State (3-4), Rutgers (5-2), Richmond (5-2)

HOT

Virginia (+11)

It’s rare to see a team leapfrog this many spots in one week. But 2024 has not been an ordinary year. And this season may be the year Virginia remains consistent (someone has to take the mantle). The Cavaliers are off to a 7-1 start under Sonia LaMonica, who is in her first year with the program. After an overtime loss to North Carolina, UVA has won four straight, including last week’s wins against a Richmond team that beat them last year and Notre Dame.

The latter was the Hoos’ signature win (so far). It was back and forth much of the way, but a 4-1 third-quarter run and tight defense in the fourth gave UVA a road win.

Maryland (+5)

An overtime loss to Florida aside, Maryland has three wins over Top 20 teams (the Terps also beat a fringe Top 20 program in Drexel). The latest win came at home versus former No. 3 James Madison. After falling behind 4-2, Maryland played pragmatically and poised, limiting the Dukes to one goal in each of the second and third quarters.

The Terps spread the ball beautifully, with seven players registering a point. Libby May (four goals) and Eloise Clevenger (four points) led the day. Emily Sterling made 14 stops.

Johns Hopkins (+3)

Stony Brook entered the Crown Lacrosse Classic hot, having downed Syracuse on the road in overtime on Tuesday. But the Blue Jays opened the second half on a 7-0 run. Then, despite giving up the next seven goals, came away with a 14-12 win. It was Abbey Hurlbrink who tallied the game’s final goal on a free position with 1:58 to play, and Jennifer Barry who corralled the critical ensuing draw. Barry finished with eight draws.

NOT

Syracuse (-9)

The Orange offense simply hasn’t looked like itself. It’s understandable — Syracuse lost critical pieces in Meaghan Tyrrell and Megan Carney, who have turned The Meg Show into a podcast. A comeback win over Notre Dame (after a hard-fought loss against Maryland) had Syracuse surging, and it looked like perhaps Cuse was finding its offensive identity.

Then Tuesday happened. In a tightly contested game, the Orange struggled to put the game away and ultimately did not. While the Orange rebounded against Virginia Tech, the Seawolves didn’t do the Orange any favors by losing to Johns Hopkins. Syracuse can do itself a favor this weekend with a win over UNC, which is experiencing its own up-and-down year.

IN

Colorado (No. 19)

The Buffs are back. A 17-11 road win over Marquette, combined with losses by Clemson and Navy (and Drexel, for that matter), sees a return to the Top 20 for Colorado. The Buffs are 5-2, played well in a loss to Northwestern and clipped Penn State last month. A win over Stanford on Friday would further solidify their case as USC’s most significant challenger in the Pac-12.

Fairfield (No. 20)

Drexel beat Navy on Wednesday. Then Fairfield beat the Drexel. Tetris is fun, right? The final score of the Fairfield-Drexel game is significant (12-5), particularly considering the confidence Drexel had coming off that Navy win. Grace Slater tallied four goals and two assists to lead Fairfield.

No, the Stags’ schedule isn’t stellar. But the staff probably didn’t think 2023 NCAA tournament teams UConn (currently 1-4) and Albany (1-6) would struggle so mightily. Off to a 5-1 start with the lone loss to Holy Cross, Fairfield has risen to each occasion and has now climbed into the Top 20.

OUT

Navy (was No. 17)

Drexel is good, but its loss to Fairfield on Saturday was not Top 20 good. A 9-3 Dragons run that spanned the second, third and fourth quarters hurt the Mids on Saturday. Though Navy rebounded by thumping Jacksonville, it’s not enough to save it a spot in the Top 20.

Clemson (was No. 20)

The Tigers have lost two of their last three, including falling to a North Carolina team that lost multiple players to injury by nine on Saturday. Clemson is only in its second year. When you watch the Tigers, the talent and athleticism are there. However, the results over top ACC programs haven’t come consistently (yet).