A few tangles between top teams gave the rankings a major shakeup.
Last week saw a ridiculous amount of top-10 matchups. No. 1 played No. 2. No. 3 played No. 5. No. 4 played No. 9. No. 6 played No. 7. In other words, my job for this week is both very easy and very hard. It also doesn’t help that the IWLCA rankings are already slightly outdated thanks to some Tuesday upsets. Nevertheless, we press on. Here’s this week’s Top 10 Talk!
1. Boston College (3-0, 0-0 ACC)
Movement: none
Last Week: W at No. 2 Northwestern 13-9
This Week: vs. UMass, vs. No. 21 Duke
The defending champs walked into Evanston and locked down the then-No. 2 Northwestern, holding a third consecutive opponent under 10 goals. The Wildcats didn’t score until the 10:58 mark of the second quarter, by which point they already trailed 6-1. Molly Driscoll had a hat trick off the bench for the Eagles. Of course, the real game MVP is Shea Dolce. The standout goalkeeper made six saves and picked up a game-high four ground balls. She also held the Wildcats to 1-for-5 on free positions. This is the team to beat until further notice.
2. North Carolina (3-0, 0-0 ACC)
Movement: up one spot
Last Week: W at No. 5 Florida 14-9
This Week: vs. No. 4 Syracuse
Another take until further notice: this is the ACC’s year in college lacrosse. After ripping through their first two opponents, the Tar Heels faced their first actual test in a Florida team that I think could make the Final Four. But North Carolina took that contest 14-9 thanks mostly to a 20-14 ground ball advantage and a 22-17 edge in shots on goal. Betty Nelson is now up to 16 saves against just 11 goals allowed. As for Chloe Humphrey, get ready to see a redshirt freshman as a Tewaaraton finalist. She has 13 goals through three games (and also gets to play lacrosse with both older sisters). She could very well win the ACC for UNC.
3. Northwestern (3-1, 0-0 B1G)
Movement: down one spot
Last Week: L vs. No. 1 Boston College 9-13, W vs. Niagara 22-5
This Week: vs. No. 25 Colorado, at No. 4 Syracuse
Well, those dreams of revenge for last year’s title game loss will have to be put on hold for a while. The Wildcats just didn’t have the offensive firepower to take down Boston College’s near-impenetrable defense, especially when defenses sell out on Madison Taylor. Taylor is now up to 20 goals in four games, but no other Wildcat even has as many as eight. The lack of a consistent second option is something to monitor, as is the fact that not a single goalkeeper has played more than 90 minutes. That Syracuse game is going to say a lot about this team’s ceiling.
4. Syracuse (3-0, 0-0 ACC)
Movement: up two spots
Last Week: W at No. 7 Maryland 15-9, W vs. Cornell 18-10
This Week: at No. 2 North Carolina, vs. No. 3 Northwestern
It’s going to be a TOUGH week for the Orange, who have to deal with a North Carolina team that’s the best in the nation (non-Boston College division) and then a motivated Northwestern squad. The Orange aren’t slouches, though — they held Maryland to nine points after a ridiculous 11-save effort from Daniella Guyette. The offense is still looking really nice with Emma Ward and Olivia Adamson, and Guyette is 16th nationally in save percentage. Both teams on the docket this week have better offensive weapons, but I wouldn’t be shocked if Syracuse is able to split those games behind some stingy defense.
5. Florida (3-1, 0-0 Big 12)
Movement: none
Last Week: L vs. No. 3 North Carolina 9-14, W at South Florida 18-11
This Week: off
The Florida defense has been excellent to start the season, giving up more than 11 goals just once. And that game was against a red-hot North Carolina team, so I won’t judge too harshly. Gianna Monaco, the junior who scored just 30 goals last season, has already put up 13 this year thanks to three straight hat tricks. The Gators’ offense, at 14.25 points per game, could use some shoring up, especially with a defense outside of the top 50 nationally. Georgia Hoey has given up 17 goals in her last two outings, but if she can recapture her midseason form from last season, the defense should figure itself out.
6. Yale (2-0, 0-0 Ivy)
Movement: up three spots
Last Week: W vs. No. 4 Michigan 12-6, W at Quinnipiac 16-6
This Week: vs. UMass Lowell, vs. Central Connecticut State
How about those Bulldogs? After Michigan had trimmed a 5-1 lead to just 6-5, I assumed the Wolverines would finish the job. Instead, Yale scored six of the last seven goals and held Michigan scoreless for the final 19:41. The Wolverines were harassed into 16 turnovers compared to 12 shots on goal, and the Bulldogs also won the ground ball battle 15-8. Yale’s next big test won’t be for a while — they play at No. 14 Stanford on March 16 — but for now, the Bulldogs can relax and continue to refine their top-10 scoring defense. They also get to enjoy my first-ever Top 10 Team of the Week (patent pending) award.
7. Virginia (2-0, 0-0 ACC)
Movement: up one spot
Last Week: W at No. 17 Princeton 13-11
This Week: vs. No. 14 Stanford, vs. No. 17 Navy
Two ways to look at this past week for the Cavaliers. On the one hand, they stormed back from a 9-6 third-quarter deficit on the road to topple a top-20 Princeton team. On the other, they were down 9-6 in the third quarter against Princeton. Jenna Dinardo scored her second hat trick of the season, and three other players on the Virginia roster also had at least three goals. The draw control advantage of 20-8 looks great. The ground ball disadvantage of 18-10…not so much. The Cavaliers have a tough week on tap, as both Stanford and Navy are top-10 scoring offenses. Can Virginia prevent those games from turning into shootouts?
8. Michigan (1-1, 0-0 B1G)
Movement: down four spots
Last Week: L at No. 9 Yale 6-12, W at Central Michigan 19-5
This Week: vs. Marquette
Well, the Yale loss doesn’t look great. Seeing Michigan get utterly shut down defensively had to be a bit cathartic for anyone who’s rooted against the Wolverines for the past few years. Losing the fourth-quarter turnover battle 4-0 is really, really rough. Now, I fully expect Hannah Nielsen to clean things up. Last year, Michigan committed a hair over 14 turnovers per game, with a similar mark in 2023. Any offense with Kaylee Dyer and Jill Smith won’t put up six goals in a game again, but Yale may have started drawing the blueprint for how to topple the Wolverines.
9. Maryland (1-1, 0-0 B1G)
Movement: down two spots
Last Week: L vs. No. 6 Syracuse 9-15, W vs. Georgetown 9-7
This Week: vs. Saint Joseph’s
Uhh…is the offense okay? The Terrapins currently sit in a tie for 81st in the nation in scoring and are tied for 66th in shots on goal per game. I said last week Virginia should have been above Maryland. I didn’t expect to be this right. Right now Kori Edmondson is the team’s leader in goals with five. Now, Georgetown and Syracuse are both really staunch defensive teams. But if this is what Maryland’s offensive lows look like now, I shudder to think of what they’ll look like against Northwestern or Michigan.
10. Johns Hopkins (1-2, 0-0 B1G)
Movement: none
Last Week: W vs. No. 25 Duke 12-11 (F/OT), L at Loyola Maryland 7-11
This Week: vs. No. 12 Penn, at Georgetown
The sirens are blaring for this offense. Johns Hopkins has put up over 12 points in one of its three games this season. The 12th goal was in overtime. A scoring offense that’s barely in the top 75 now has to deal with Penn (9.15 goals allowed per game last season) and Georgetown (8.0 goals per game allowed this season). Had their loss to Loyola Maryland been on Sunday night and not Tuesday, the Blue Jays would almost certainly not be in the top 10. They’d potentially (at least if I had a vote) be lucky to stay in the top 15. Johns Hopkins has one last chance to prove it belongs on this list this Saturday at home against Penn. Otherwise, the Quakers could take this spot.
Just missed the cut: Notre Dame (playing No. 19 Clemson on Saturday), Penn (see above), Loyola Maryland (just beat No. 10, playing No. 16 Princeton on Sunday)