Some NCAA Division III women's lacrosse teams wasted as little time playing quality opponents this season as players do on self-starts following a whistle, and the results had significant effects in the first in-season edition of the Nike/US Lacrosse Top 20.
Most notably, 2017 national semifinalist and preseason No. 5 Washington & Lee dropped two one-goal affairs to open its season, but the Generals got their troops in order to knock off then-No. 4 Franklin & Marshall on the road Saturday. Then-No. 11 Catholic challenged preseason-No. 9 Salisbury before falling, 13-9, on Maryland's Eastern Shore.
Defending NCAA champion Gettysburg and preseason-No. 14 Mary Washington remain undefeated after an early schedule that included one ranked opponent each. Many northern teams remained idle last weekend.
Feb. 26, 2018 |
W/L |
Prev |
Next |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | TCNJ | 1-0 | 1 | 3/1 vs. Haverford |
| 2 | Middlebury | 0-0 | 2 | 3/3 at Bates |
| 3 | Gettysburg | 2-0 | 3 | 3/4 vs. Denison |
| 4 | York | 1-0 | 6 | 2/28 vs. No. 18 Franklin & Marshall |
| 5 | Trinity | 0-0 | 7 | 3/6 vs. Stevens |
| 6 | Hamilton | 0-0 | 8 | 3/3 at No. 10 Tufts |
| 7 | Salisbury | 2-0 | 9 | 3/3 vs. No. 17 Washington & Lee |
| 8 | William Smith | 0-0 | 10 | 2/28 vs. Geneseo |
| 9 | Brockport | 0-0 | 12 | 2/28 at Nazareth |
| 10 | Tufts | 0-0 | 13 | 3/3 vs. No. 6 Hamilton |
| 11 | Mary Washington | 3-0 | 14 | 2/28 vs. Randolph-Macon |
| 12 | Colby | 0-0 | 15 | 3/3 vs. Amherst |
| 13 | St. John Fisher | 0-0 | 16 | 3/5 at Colorado College |
| 14 | Ithaca | 1-0 | 17 | 3/3 at No. 9 Brockport |
| 15 | Cortland | 0-0 | 19 | 3/3 vs. Clarkson |
| 16 | St. Mary's | 2-0 | NR | 2/28 vs. No. 19 Catholic |
| 17 | Washington and Lee | 1-2 | 5 | 3/3 at No. 7 Salisbury |
| 18 | Franklin & Marshall | 1-1 | 4 | 2/28 at No. 4 York |
| 19 | Catholic | 0-1 | 11 | 2/28 at No. 16 St. Mary's |
| 20 | Claremont-Mudd-Scripps | 2-1 | 20 | 3/3 at Whittier |
Also considered: Colorado College, Marymount, Meredith, Messiah, Stevens
Nike/US Lacrosse Rankings
Division I Men | Division I Women
Division II Men | Division II Women
Division III Men | Division III Women
HOT
Mary Washington (+3)
The Eagles gained revenge for an early loss to W&L last season, winning on the road, 12-11, Feb. 18. Mary Washington emerged in a back-and-forth affair thanks to four players that scored at least two goals each. Mary Washington continued its season-opening slate of in-commonwealth foes by dismantling Shenandoah, 18-6, and Lynchburg, 18-9.
NOT
Franklin & Marshall (-14)
With so many ranked teams idle, early-season rankings can fluctuate significantly, and the Diplomats represent such a case. After winning at Elizabethtown 17-3, F&M out-groundballed, out-shot, out-free positioned, out-turnovered (in a good way) and out-cleared 0-2 W&L Saturday. But the Diplomats won only four of 14 draw controls and fell 8-4 on a tough weather day in Lancaster, Pa. No time to sulk for F&M, which travels to No. 4 York Wednesday.
IN
St. Mary's
The Seahawks debut at No. 16 thanks largely to a 10-9 win over preseason-No. 5 W&L Wednesday in St. Mary's City, Md. Down 6-5 at halftime, they scored five unanswered goals in the first eight minutes before holding off a rally by the Generals that included three shots on goal in the final 14 seconds. Caitlin Katchmar led St. Mary's with three goals in the upset, and the Seahawks avoided a let down by winning at McDaniel, 19-11.
OUT
Messiah (previously 18)
The Falcons graduated much of their best from last season's squad, so it's not a surprise that an opener at No. 3 and defending champion Gettysburg would send them out of the Top 20. The Bullets dispatched Messiah 15-3 last Wednesday, achieving with ease what they could not do a year ago. Last year the Falcons took Gettysburg to overtime before losing 7-6.