I don’t know if you take your hash browns scattered or smothered at Waffle House, but if you’re a fan of collegiate women’s lacrosse, your eggs were definitely scrambled this weekend.
Eight of the Top 20 teams from last week’s Nike/US Lacrosse rankings suffered losses, including No. 1 Maryland falling in overtime to rival North Carolina on Saturday.
That opened the door for Stony Brook, and the Seawolves seized the opportunity with a convincing 16-3 win over a strong Denver team on Sunday to climb to No. 1 in this week’s poll. The Seawolves have a key Midwestern trip this weekend to face Northwestern and Michigan.
Feb. 26, 2018 |
W/L |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stony Brook | 3-0 | 2 | 3/3 at No. 13 Northwestern |
| 2 | James Madison | 4-0 | 5 | 3/2 at Temple |
| 3 | North Carolina | 3-1 | 11 | 3/3 vs. No. 7 Florida |
| 4 | Maryland | 2-1 | 1 | 2/28 vs. UMBC |
| 5 | Syracuse | 3-0 | 3 | 3/4 at No. 8 Virginia |
| 6 | Boston College | 5-0 | 4 | 2/27 vs. No. 10 Navy |
| 7 | Florida | 2-1 | 6 | 2/28 vs. Jacksonville |
| 8 | Virginia | 3-0 | 14 | 2/28 vs. William & Mary |
| 9 | Towson | 2-0 | 9 | 2/28 vs. Michigan |
| 10 | Navy | 3-0 | 7 | 2/27 at No. 6 Boston College |
| 11 | Penn | 2-0 | 12 | 2/28 vs. Rutgers |
| 12 | Princeton | 1-1 | 10 | 2/27 at Lehigh |
| 13 | Northwestern | 4-1 | 15 | 3/3 vs. No. 1 Stony Brook |
| 14 | USC | 2-2 | 8 | 3/7 vs. No. 6 Boston College |
| 15 | Virginia Tech | 3-2 | NR | 2/28 vs. George Mason |
| 16 | Duke | 3-1 | 12 | 3/2 vs. Stanford |
| 17 | Notre Dame | 3-2 | 16 | 2/28 vs. Marquette |
| 18 | Penn State | 3-1 | 18 | 3/3 vs. Loyola |
| 19 | Yale | 3-0 | NR | 3/3 vs. Harvard |
| 20 | Johns Hopkins | 3-1 | NR | 2/28 at Georgetown |
Also considered: Colorado, Cornell, Denver, Jacksonville, Lehigh, Louisville, Loyola, UMass
Nike/US Lacrosse Rankings
Division I Men | Division I Women
Division II Men | Division II Women
Division III Men | Division III Women
HOT
North Carolina (+8)
North Carolina’s young players were outstanding on Saturday — led by Jamie Ortega (4g, 2a), Ally Mastroianni (2g, 1a) and Taylor Moreno (seven saves) — but it was the seniors that came up with the final key goals in Saturday’s 16-15 win over Maryland, snapping the Terps’ 25-game winning streak. Ela Hazar scored the game-tying goal in the final minute and then Marie McCool scored the winner in overtime.
Virginia (+6)
Virginia improved to 3-0 for the first time since 2012 with a strong 14-10 road win over Princeton. The Cavaliers have won their first three games by a combined 25 goals and are shooting 49.5 percent as a team.
NOT
USC (-6)
USC has played a brutally tough schedule to open the season and has the battle scars to prove it. The Trojans’ first four games have come against Virginia Tech, Stony Brook, Notre Dame and Northwestern, and they’ve yet to play a game on campus. Sunday’s loss to Northwestern pushed the Trojans down in the rankings, but USC has a chance to regroup as it will be idle until Boston College comes to Los Angeles on March 7.
Duke (-4)
Duke lost some of the momentum from last weekend’s win over Northwestern with a 17-14 road loss at Virginia Tech on Saturday. Freshman Charlotte North continued to shine with three goals and two assists and leads the Blue Devils in scoring with 18 points (15g, 3a).
IN
Virginia Tech
After opening the season 0-2 with tough losses to USC and James Madison, Virginia Tech won its third straight game, beating Duke 17-14 on Saturday. The Hokies erupted for 10 first-half goals to jump out to a 10-3 lead and Tristan McGinley led the Hokies with six in the game.
Yale
Year three of the Erica LaGrow era at Yale is starting off on a high note. The former U.S. national team member has the Bulldogs off to a 3-0 start following Saturday’s 14-9 win over UMass. First-year attacker Kayla Duperrouzel had five goals in the win and leads Yale with 10 goals this season.
Johns Hopkins
The Blue Jays fell on a last-minute goal to Penn on Saturday, but certainly had a strong showing. A win earlier in the week over Loyola gained more luster after the Greyhounds took Florida to overtime on Sunday.
OUT
Cornell (previously 17)
Cornell jumped out to an early 4-0 lead on Penn State, but a game of runs found the Big Red on the wrong end of Penn State’s four-goal run to end the game in a 16-11 loss to the Nittany Lions. The Big Red will get a chance to move back in the rankings when they host Penn on Saturday in their Ivy League opener.
UMass (previously 19)
UMass started last season 1-3 before reeling off 16 straight wins and reaching the second round of the NCAA tournament. The 2018 season is off to a similar slow start after losses to Boston College and Yale last week pushed them to 1-2 on the season.
Colorado (previously 20)
The Buffs beat former MPSF rival San Diego State 17-12 in their only game of the week, but key wins from teams out of the rankings moved Colorado to the outside looking in. The Buffs hosts No. 15 Virginia Tech is a big game on Sunday.