It’s Junior High all over again.

Remember those middle school dances when the girls – ahead of schedule on the maturation front – would strut out confidently to the dance floor while the guys hugged the wall trying to retain their cool?

Same thing here. The Big Dance is upon us and it’s the women who are taking the lead one week ahead of the men. So before we look back at some of the pivotal moments from the past week, let’s get to the bracket baby!

Bracketology: So many tasty first-round matchups; so many questions, so little time. Here are a few of my most intriguing opening round matches:

Cal's Alex Morgan is still an unknown for the NCAA tournament.

California vs. Duke: This match is a must-see on so many levels. Duke is led by a core of sensational young freshman who have yet to be tested on the biggest stage. How will Mollie Pathman, Laura Weinberg, Kaitlyn Kerr and Gilda Doria hold up? We shall see. The question on Cal’s side is clear: Alex Morgan, who is currently playing with the U.S. Women’s National Team, will she play or won’t she? It will make all the difference.

Boston College vs. Boston University: Done for the convenience of travel I’m sure, this meeting has its own cross-town appeal. Baked beans will be enjoyed by all and both teams will be playing “wick-ed haaad!”

UCLA vs. BYU: A College Cup semifinalist in 2009, UCLA hasn’t quite lived up to its lofty standard this season. But coach Jill Ellis knows how to win postseason games, and the Bruins still have top echelon talent like Sydney Leroux and Lauren Barnes. The Cougars, on the other hand, have a very balanced attack and are flying high from their Mountain West Conference tournament win. Expect a tight contest.

Snubbed: Someone always gets left out of the party don’t they? Topping the short list of programs with the strongest grievance is Denver, a program that compiled a record of 19-2-1. The Pioneers had an RPI ranking of No. 45 as of last week – better than that of tournament qualifiers Auburn and Oklahoma. Let the complaining begin.

Penn State: They pulled it off. Those relentless Penn State Nittany Lions climbed their way into a share of their 13th consecutive Big Ten title. This, after starting the season 2-6-1 and at one point choosing the starting lineup partially based on a player vote. Hats off to a tremendous program.

Timeout: Florida State coach Mark Krikorian has been suspended one game and the school has been fined $25,000 for not bringing several starting players to the ACC tourney last week.

Krikorian took some serious backlash for resting starters in his team’s opening loss to Wake Forest last week and now he’ll have to sit out the team’s opening tournament game against Middle Tennessee.

Women’s Top 20 Action (SEE FULL SCOREBOARD)

1. Stanford def. Oregon State 2-0; def. Oregon 3-0
2. Portland tied. St. Mary’s(w) 1-1
3. North Carolina def. Virginia Tech 4-2 (ACC tourney); lost to Wake Forest 1-1 on PKs (ACC tourney)
4. Florida def. Vanderbilt 5-3 (ACC tourney); def. Georgia 3-1 (ACC tourney); def. South Carolina 1-0 (ACC championship)
5. Maryland def. Duke 1-0 (ACC Tourney); def. Boston College 1-0 (ACC tourney); lost to Wake Forest 1-1 in PKs (ACC championship)
6. Oklahoma State def. Texas Tech 3-1 (Big 12 tourney); def. Nebraska 3-2 in OT (Big 12 tourney); def. Oklahoma 1-1 in PKs (Big 12 championship)
7. Notre Dame was idle
8. Virginia lost to Boston College 1-0 (ACC tourney)
9. Texas A&M(w) def. Colorado 0-0 in PKs (Big 12 tourney); lost to Oklahoma 1-0 in OT (Big 12 tourney)
10. Florida State lost to Wake Forest 3-1 (ACC tourney)
11. Boston College def. Virginia 1-0 (ACC tourney); lost to Maryland 1-0 (ACC tourney)
12. UCF def. SMU 2-0 (C-USA tourney); lost to Memphis 1-0 (C-USA championship)
13. West Virginia def. Connecticut 2-0 (Big East tourney); def. South Florida 1-0 (Big East championship)
14. Ohio State def. Michigan State 1-0
15. Dayton def. St. Bonaventure 1-0 in OT (Atlantic 10 tourney); def. Charlotte 4-3 in 2OT (Atlantic 10 championship)
16. South Carolina def. Kentucky 1-1 in PKs (SEC tourney); def. LSU 1-1 in PKs (SEC tourney); lost to Florida 1-0 (SEC final)
17. Wake Forest def. Florida State 3-1 (ACC tourney); def. North Carolina 1-1 in 2OT (ACC tourney); def. Maryland 1-1 in PKs (ACC championship)
18. BYU def. San Diego State 2-0 (Mountain West tourney); def. New Mexico (1-0)
19. Marquette lost to South Florida 3-2 (Big East championship)
20. Illinois def. Northwestern 1-0