We learned two very important things about the Big Ten this weekend.
First off, Northwestern is in a class of its own in that conference. Yes, Maryland gets another crack at the Wildcats Monday, but Northwestern’s 25-12 win over the Terps was a statement. Without out-of-conference competition, it’s difficult to compare Northwestern to the likes of North Carolina or Syracuse — but the Wildcats look dangerous.
Secondly, we learned (or maybe it was just reinforced) that the conference after Northwestern is a slugfest of teams trading punches with each other. Ohio State was the latest team to surprise the nation, taking down then-No. 10 Penn State on both Friday and Sunday.
The bottom half of the Nike/US Lacrosse Division I Women’s Top 20 has been altered as a result.
Nike / US Lacrosse
Division I Women’s Top 20
March 29, 2021 |
W/L |
Prev |
Next |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | North Carolina | 10-0 | 1 | 4/3 vs. No. 2 Syracuse |
| 2 | Syracuse | 6-0 | 2 | 4/3 at No. 1 North Carolina |
| 3 | Northwestern | 8-0 | 3 | 3/29 vs. No. 9 Maryland |
| 4 | Notre Dame | 5-2 | 4 | 4/3 at No. 7 Virginia |
| 5 | Stony Brook | 8-2 | 5 | 4/3 at Vermont |
| 6 | Boston College | 7-1 | 6 | 4/3 vs. No. 8 Duke |
| 7 | Virginia | 8-2 | 9 | 4/3 vs. No. 4 Notre Dame |
| 8 | Duke | 6-4 | 7 | 4/3 at No. 6 Boston College |
| 9 | Maryland | 5-2 | 8 | 3/29 at No. 3 Northwestern |
| 10 | Jacksonville | 5-0 | 12 | 4/3 vs. Stetson |
| 11 | Florida | 7-2 | 13 | 4/1 vs. East Carolina |
| 12 | Michigan | 3-4 | 11 | 4/1 vs. Johns Hopkins |
| 13 | Loyola | 5-2 | 14 | 3/31 at No. 17 Navy |
| 14 | Richmond | 6-1 | 15 | 4/1 at Davidson |
| 15 | Drexel | 7-1 | 17 | 4/3 at Hofstra |
| 16 | Stanford | 5-0 | 18 | 3/31 at Fresno State |
| 17 | Navy | 4-0 | 19 | 3/31 vs. No. 13 Loyola |
| 18 | Towson | 6-2 | 20 | 4/3 vs. High Point |
| 19 | Louisville | 4-6 | 16 | 4/3 at Virginia Tech |
| 20 | Penn State | 3-5 | 10 | 4/7 at Johns Hopkins |
Also considered (alphabetical order): Arizona State (7-2), Denver (6-1), Elon (5-0), James Madison (4-3), Johns Hopkins (2-4), Ohio State (3-7), Rutgers (3-5), Temple (6-3), Vanderbilt (9-2)
Nike/US Lacrosse Rankings
Division I Men | Division I Women
Division II Men | Division II Women
Division III Men | Division III Women
HOT
Navy (+2)
Much of Navy’s rise can be attributed to the results of teams around them in the rankings, but the Mids get the “hot” designation because they were able to take the field on Saturday for the first time since February 27. A COVID-19 scare instigated a mandatory shutdown of the campus, causing the delay.
Navy won a close one against Army, needing to score the final three tallies in a 13-12 win. Nicole Victory fittingly scored the winner with 3:46 left to play.
Northwestern (no change)
Can anyone stop Izzy Scane? She’s been on another planet (maybe even in another universe) this spring. She’s scored 51 goals with 14 assists in eight games. Lauren Gilbert has 41 goals and five assists, meaning the two have combed for 111 points through eight games. Sheesh.
NOT
Penn State (-10)
Dropping two games to an unranked Ohio State team that entered the weekend on a six-game losing streak is going to sting for some time. Penn State hangs on at No. 20 because of that one win over Maryland, which has since proven to be the second-best team in the Big Ten.
Louisville (-3)
Louisville looked great against Boston College on Friday, ultimately falling in overtime. It was an entirely different result Sunday, as BC blitzed the Cardinals 18-3. The ACC schedule doesn’t get any easier for the Cardinals, and stealing that Friday contest against No. 6 Boston College would have been massive.