Syracuse Survives Test, Still No. 1 in Nike/USA Lacrosse D-I Women's Top 20

March 27, 2023

Beth Ann Mayer

Rich Barnes

Syracuse is 11-0 and sits atop of the national rankings for the second week in a row. The Orange shook off a first-half challenge from Stony Brook for their 10th win on Wednesday and raced by Louisville 17-5 on Saturday.

Northwestern (No. 2) topped Johns Hopkins and Stanford. UNC rebounded from its first loss in more than 1,000 days with wins over High Point and then-No. 14 Clemson. Denver, one of three unbeatens left, remains at No. 4 after topping Jacksonville 12-7 on Wednesday. Boston College staved off a challenge from Virginia Tech to improve to 7-3.

James Madison moves up one spot to No. 6. The Dukes beat Virginia 10-8 on Wednesday and Temple by the same score on Saturday. They’ve won three games against Top 20 teams and are 2-0 in AAC play.

The third undefeated team, Army, topped Colgate 12-8 and holds firm at No. 13.

The lone newcomer is UMass at No. 20. The Minutewomen are 10-1 — their lone blemish was at Boston College on February 15.

NIKE/USA LACROSSE
DIVISION I WOMEN’S TOP 20

	March 27, 2023	W/L	Prev	Next
1	Syracuse	11-0	1	3/28 vs. Cornell
2	Northwestern	10-1	2	3/30 vs. No. 18 Penn State
3	North Carolina	9-1	3	4/1 at No. 12 Notre Dame
4	Denver	10-0	4	4/1 vs. Villanova
5	Boston College	7-3	5	3/29 vs. Dartmouth
6	James Madison	10-1	7	4/1 vs. Old Dominion
7	Stony Brook	6-2	6	3/29 at Johns Hopkins
8	Maryland	8-3	8	3/29 vs. Princeton
9	Florida	7-3	9	4/1 vs. Penn
10	Loyola	7-2	12	3/29 vs. American
11	Virginia	8-3	10	4/1 at No. 1 Syracuse
12	Notre Dame	6-3	11	4/1 at No. 3 North Carolina
13	Army	9-0	13	3/29 at Lehigh
14	Yale	7-2	15	4/1 at Brown
15	Clemson	9-4	14	4/1 vs. Louisville
16	Duke	6-5	16	4/1 vs. Virginia Tech
17	Michigan	9-4	17	4/2 at No. 8 Maryland
18	Penn State	9-2	18	3/30 at No. 2 Northwestern
19	Navy	8-2	19	3/29 vs. Lafayette
20	UMass	10-1	NR	4/1 at Davidson

Also considered (alphabetical order): Jacksonville (5-5), Princeton (4-3), Richmond (9-2), USC (8-2), Villanova (8-2)

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)

Stony Brook entered the Dome unfazed — as the Seawolves often do — and raced out to an 8-7 lead on Wednesday. But Syracuse’s offense went to a different level with about 5 minutes to go in the first half, going on a 4-0 run before the break before winning 16-11. The Orange turned around and made it look easy on Saturday in a running-time rout of Louisville.

James Madison (+1)

The Dukes’ only loss of the season came at UNC in week one. A 10-8 win over Virginia on a night when star attacker Isabella Peterson only scored one goal shows that teams will have to do more than just shut her down to beat JMU.

Maryland (no change)

After back-to-back losses to top 10 foes in James Madison and Denver, Maryland has won five in a row, most recently a 16-12 win at Penn on Wednesday. Keep an eye on freshman Kori Edmonson, who has tallied hat tricks in six straight games.

NOT

Notre Dame (-1)

The Irish’s defense allowed double-digit goals for just the second time this season against a Virginia team that entered the game having lost three of its last four. The Irish have an opportunity for a quick rebound Monday against Brown.

IN

UMass (No. 20)

UMass beat St. Bonaventurer on Saturday for its ninth straight win and now sit 10-1 overall. The issue with where to rank UMass has been the schedule — it isn’t the strongest. But recent wins over UConn and a rout of a Richmond team that beat ranked Virginia are nothing to shake a stick at. The Minutewomen boast a high-flying offense that ranks in the top 10 of Division I, averaging nearly 16 goals per game behind Fiona McGowan (27 G, 26 A).

OUT

Princeton (Was No. 20)

Princeton rallied from an 8-6 halftime deficit to beat Cornell. But at this point, the Minutewomen’s 10-1 start is simply impossible to ignore. If the Tigers beat Maryland on Wednesday, there’s a good chance they will re-enter.

PREVIOUS RANKINGS

Written By

Beth Ann Mayer

Beth Ann Mayer is a Long Island-based writer. She joined USA Lacrosse in 2022 after freelancing for Inside Lacrosse for five years. She first began covering the game as a student at Syracuse. When she's not writing, you can find her wrangling her husband, two children and surplus of pets.

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