DII, DIII Roundup: History made in Boston

by Jacob Moskowitz
October 9, 2015

The UMass-Boston men have already made school history this season.

In this week’s National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) NCAA Division III Top-25 Poll, the Beacons rank 23rd, marking the first time in school history the Beacons have made the top 25. The Beacons started 10-0 (their record sits at 10-1 now after a 1-0 loss on Wednesday at Babson) thanks to a stellar defense, which is allowing just .39 goals per game, good for 12th in the country.

The Beacons are ranked 23rd in the NSCAA poll and 26th on D3Soccer.com, but just 93rd on Bennett Rank. Bennett Rank has them playing the 202nd hardest strength of schedule, which is why they are ranked so low. However, the Beacons have made the most of their schedule. They have outscored opponents 31-5; their 31 goals is tied for 25th in the nation, and their shots per game--20.7--ranks 18th in the country. Soon enough, Bennett Rank will have to give them the credit they deserve.

To be fair, the No. 38 Hardin-Simmons women’s team has not played the toughest opponents in its past four games, facing an average ranking of 227. However, HSU has made the most of its schedule, outscoring these opponents 33-1. They started the scoring barrage with a 11-0 thrashing of Louisiana College, during which HSU saw one hat trick and two players score two apiece. To cap off the impressive victory, the Cowgirls outshot Louisiana College 55-2, including 33-1 on goal.

In their next match, against Belhaven, the Cowgirls netted three in the first eight minutes. They outshot Belhaven 30-9 in the 10-0 victory. To finish off the three game scoring binge, they defeated Howard Payne 9-0 and did not allow their opponent to take a shot, en route to a 39-0 shot advantage and 25-0 on goal.

They held a 3-0 lead in their next match, this one against UT-Dallas. They finally gave up a goal in the 53rd minute, ending a 39-0 scoring run. Overall, HSU averages 5.7 goals per game and has outscored its opponents by a total of 58-7.

A new team sits atop the Division II women’s NSCAA rankings. Gannon has made school history, as it is the school’s first time ever ranked in the top spot. The 11-0 start is the best in program history and the 11 wins already surpass their wins total from last season.

This is the first time Gannon athletics has seen a No. 1 ranking since the women’s basketball team reached No. 1 on USA Today Sports top 25 poll back in February, 2010.

Despite an 0-5-2 start to the campaign, the Cal State L.A. women’s program sits at No. 19 on Bennett Rank. They began the season at No. 6 - and No. 19 in the NSCAA rankings - with high expectations. Due to a tough strength of schedule (ranked 11th toughest in the nation), some close calls (three 1-0 defeats to top 50 opponents), and two recent impressive victories (1-0 wins over two top 25 teams), the Golden Eagles find themselves in the top 25 after three straight wins.

If we take a look at the numbers behind the 0-5-2 start, hope was clearly on the horizon for Cal State L.A. Their defense has been solid all year, yielding just eight total goals. No loss has come by more than a single goal, and they have allowed two goals in a game just once this year, in a 2-1 loss to then ranked no. 21 UC San Diego, a game they recently avenged with a 1-0 victory.

On Wednesday, they fought Hawaii-Hilo to a 1-1 draw. Going forward, the Golden Eagles must pick it up on offense; they have managed more than one goal in a game just once so far this season.. They have a tough strength of schedule going forward, but if they continue their stellar play and score a few more goals, we may see their name called come tournament time.

Finally, check out this thunderous shot from Urbana's Raoui Lassoued, which earned our DII/DIII goal of the week. Good luck topping that.

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