February 1, 2013 by Charlie Eisenhood in News, Rankings with 9 comments
Today, we launch the first iteration of our weekly college Power Rankings. We have a top 25 for all divisions (DI Open/Women’s, DIII Open/Women’s) and will post updates on Wednesdays beginning next week.
Consider this an open thread for discussion of the initial rankings. They were made based on a combination of past program strength, 2012 College Series results, Fall tournament performance, and early spring tournament performance.
Keep in mind, these are power rankings, not necessarily where we think teams will finish at the end of the season. Wins count for a lot and can boost teams significantly in the rankings. Soon we will add a coaches/captains poll (much like in college basketball) to the mix.
Check out the rankings right here.
Quick thoughts on each division:
DI OPEN
– Pittsburgh is the clear early 2013 favorite with a strong returning core and a rock-solid program. Alex Thorne and Tyler Degirolamo are set to lead En Nabah Sur to another deep run.
– Central Florida looks very strong again this season, and their easy T-Town Throwdown win keeps them in the top 5.
– With a strong early showing at the Santa Barbara Invite, Arizona just misses the top 10 but vaults into contention at #11. Williams also creeps in at #24 on the back of their 5-1 effort this weekend.
– Texas A&M (#17) has been steadily preparing for a deep run and this looks like it could be their year. Watch for Matt Bennett and Dalton Smith to guide Dozen to a third South Central bid.
– The Northeast is going to be a battle as Tufts (#10), Dartmouth (#20), and Harvard (#21) duke it out for bids and a spot at the College Championships. Tufts is the early favorite, but Dartmouth is on the rise.
– Washington looks to be top 10 quality, but fell to #14 after a rough showing at Santa Barbara this weekend.
DI WOMEN’S
– Oregon earns the number one spot after a #2 finish at the 2012 College Championships. A retuning Sophie Darch and Bailey Zanheiser (who got club experience with Riot this past season) combined with light roster turnover makes them the early favorite.
– Sonoma State, despite losing standout Maggie Ruden this season, returns the vast majority of their roster on both sides of the disc. Their loss to Victoria (#18) in the finals of the Santa Barbara Invite matters, but not significantly so. The wind and their strong comeback is encouraging for this still on-the-rise team.
– Stanford (#5) had a weak showing this weekend in Santa Barbara, but were without their star Michaela Meister who was trying out for U23 Worlds in Los Angeles. They look poised to be a top team this year.
– Georgia (#11) is looking like the strongest team out of the Southeast after their Classic City Classic win in the fall.
– North Carolina (#19) will be looking to come out of the gate strong at the Queen City Tune Up next weekend. They have room to improve, but they are a consistently strong program.
DIII OPEN
– Carleton GOP (#1), despite losing Jon Isaac, one of the best handlers at the DIII Championships, still have Rhys Lindmark and Scott Graber, making them the team to beat.
– St. Johns Little turnover and a well-rounded roster make St. John’s an elite team after a disappointing 5th place Nationals finish.
– Stevens Tech (#7) had fall wins over Connecticut, Rutgers, and NYU that show what the return of Mason
Compton, Chris Fairfield, and Andrew Misthos can do.
– Middlebury (#11), after a few years of play against DI talent, should be ready for their return to the DIII game.
– Bowdoin (#18) graduated ten seniors including leaders Taylor Tremble and Dylan Kane. We’ll see if Sam Fichtner and William Page can keep Bowdoin afloat.
DIII WOMEN’S
– Claremont, coming off of a 2012 DIII title, graduated a lot of seniors, but captain Liz Duda returns with a strong core. Until we see otherwise, they’re the team to beat.
– Carleton-B lost to Claremont by three in the semis last year, but will be competing for the top spot this season.
– Princeton (#9) only graduated a handful of players and will look to improve on a disappointing 2012 Nationals performance.
