Gettysburg’s win over former No. 2 Franklin & Marshall led to some shuffling of teams near the top of the Nike/USA Lacrosse Division III Women’s Top 20.
The Bullets moved into the top five with the win, but Washington and Lee — which also has a victory over F&M and just two one-goal losses — was the biggest benefactor. The Generals moved up six spots, while teams like William Smith and Colby, which both enjoyed wins last week, were impacted by the trickle-down effect of other teams climbing.
Hamilton was the only team to drop out of the Top 20 this week, following lopsided losses to Wesleyan and Tufts. That made room for Roger Williams to jump in with a 13-1 record and one notable win over No. 8 Colby earlier this season.
NIKE/USA LACROSSE
DIVISION III WOMEN’S TOP 20
April 25, 2022 |
W/L |
Prev |
Next |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1 |
Middlebury |
14-0 |
1 |
4/27 at Williams |
|
2 |
Salisbury |
12-2 |
3 |
4/27 vs. St. Mary's |
|
3 |
Washington and Lee |
13-2 |
9 |
4/28 at Bridgewater |
|
4 |
TCNJ |
11-2 |
5 |
4/26 at Rutgers-Camden |
|
5 |
Gettysburg |
12-3 |
8 |
4/27 vs. McDaniel |
|
6 |
Franklin & Marshall |
13-2 |
2 |
4/27 vs. Dickinson |
|
7 |
William Smith |
14-1 |
4 |
4/30 vs. Vassar |
|
8 |
Colby |
12-2 |
6 |
4/27 vs. Bates |
|
9 |
Tufts |
11-3 |
7 |
4/27 at Bowdoin |
|
10 |
St. Lawrence |
14-1 |
10 |
4/26 at Nazareth |
|
11 |
Ithaca |
12-2 |
11 |
4/27 at Hamilton |
|
12 |
York |
11-5 |
13 |
4/27 at Stevenson |
|
13 |
Wesleyan |
11-3 |
14 |
4/27 at Connecticut College |
|
14 |
Messiah |
11-4 |
12 |
4/27 at Hood |
|
15 |
SUNY Cortland |
11-4 |
15 |
4/27 at SUNY Potsdam |
|
16 |
SUNY Geneseo |
11-2 |
16 |
4/28 vs. St. John Fisher |
|
17 |
Catholic |
9-4 |
19 |
4/27 at Shenandoah |
|
18 |
Roanoke |
12-3 |
20 |
4/27 vs. Randolph |
|
19 |
Pomona-Pitzer |
14-0 |
17 |
4/27 at Chapman |
|
20 |
Roger Williams |
13-1 |
NR |
4/27 at Western New England |
Also considered (alphabetical order): Amherst (9-5), SUNY Brockport (8-5), Chicago (14-1), FDU-Florham (12-2), Haverford (11-3)
Nike/USA Lacrosse Rankings
Division I Men | Division I Women
Division II Men | Division II Women
Division III Men | Division III Women
HOT
Washington and Lee (+6)
The Generals have won 12 straight since back-to-back one-goal losses to No. 2 Salisbury and No. 5 Gettysburg as part of a 2-2 start to the season. They had opened with a narrow win over Franklin & Marshall, but since their lone defeats, they have added notable victories over ranked opponents like Catholic, York and Roanoke. On Saturday, the Generals beat once-ranked Denison 10-5 on the road.
W&L doesn’t have the most difficult schedule, but the team has played well against top competition and has been rewarded for its consistency.
Gettysburg (+3)
The Bullets went through a tough stretch to end March with three losses in five games — against Tufts, TCNJ and Salisbury — but they carry a six-game winning streak into the final week of the regular season.
That includes Wednesday’s 13-7 win over Franklin & Marshall in which Katie Fullowan led with four goals and Jordan Basso and Gabi Connor added hat tricks. Gettysburg, which remains unbeaten in the Centennial Conference, took an 8-5 lead into halftime and held the Diplomats to two goals in the second half.
NOT
Franklin & Marshall (-4)
The Diplomats’ loss to Gettysburg ended their 12-game winning streak and knocked them out of the No. 2 spot. It wasn’t a bad loss in terms of opponent, but F&M fell behind early and never recovered in the six-goal defeat. Emily Kitchin made eight saves on 21 shots on target.
F&M rebounded with an 18-6 win over Washington College but now sits behind Gettysburg in the Centennial Conference standings.
Messiah (-2)
York took an 8-0 lead over the Falcons early in the second quarter, and that set the tone for Messiah’s disappointing 20-7 setback Wednesday. Their first loss in the MAC Commonwealth this season ended a seven-game winning streak.
The Falcons (11-4) bounced back to beat Lebanon Valley College on Saturday but now have just two games left in the regular season.
IN
Roger Williams (No. 20)
The Hawks have won 13 games since opening with a 10-9 loss at Springfield on February 23. That included a notable win over No. 8 Colby, and more recently, dominant decisions against Commonwealth Coast Conference foes Nichols and University of New England, which they outscored 46-7 last week.
Roger Williams wraps up the regular season at Western New England on Wednesday before CCC tournament play begins this weekend. The Hawks are led by Mandy Beck (45 goals, 21 assists) and Nikki Norton (24 goals, 35 assists). Hannah Goodwin has a 6.9 goals against average.
OUT
Hamilton (No. 18)
The Continentals didn’t look competitive in two games last week, falling to Wesleyan 18-8 on Wednesday and Tufts 21-4 on Saturday. Molly Laliberty’s effort in goal for Tufts made the line look worse than maybe it should have, as she recorded 18 saves, but the two lopsided losses cost Hamilton its spot in the Top 20.
Hamilton is now 7-5 after wrapping up NESCAC play with a 13-12 win over Williams on Sunday. The Continentals have two more non-conference games left to conclude the regular season, including hosting Ithaca on Wednesday.