Davenport during the 2016 DII college championship. •
There are so many colleges in motion in the fall that the first DII college rankings can often serve as an overview of the country’s leagues. In these early rankings, teams are organized by a combination of conferences’ relative strength and the weekly results. Yes, it’s early. Yes, the Top 20 will change. But Round 1 is starting place.
Davenport played close games in the DII fall final four last year, but won the national championship convincingly. Many important players have returned – Hunter Moreland (pictured), Danielle Ordway, Brenna Donahue – and Girls High School All-American Hannah Garcia is initiating her college experience with the Michigan team. Ashlee Bryge has relocated to DI varsity Central Washington.
Winona is as strong as ever, winning its 10-straight All-Minnesota title and opening the Northern Lights season with a 72-0 win over St. Cloud State. All-American Lanoira Duhart is captaining the squad this year, and sees players like Megan Wolff, who featured on the Youngbloodz 7s at club nationals, and Cassie Schultz, who scored a hat trick last week, lend quality support. Mankato State has proven to be the second-best program in the league, and we’ll be watching them as they kick off their season this weekend.
The 3-5 slots came down to Ithaca College, St. Michael’s and Vassar. Of the three, the Brewers advanced the deepest into last year’s playoffs and are consistently good, but head coach Tony Brown expressed deep concern for the team’s tackle completion in Saturday’s win against Albany (also on the Top 20). Ithaca College meanwhile has put down three solid wins in Upstate New York, and is one of two teams that has banked that many league games thus far. Geneseo (on the rankings) and Buffalo State round out an excellent trio of competition in Upstate New York, and are teams to watch.
St. Michael’s meanwhile hasn’t played a league game, but has gone toe-to-toe with two DI programs in friendlies. The Rugby Northeast (RNE) team shut out Boston University, and then fell just short of DI fall champion UCONN, 24-19, last weekend. That game was a tale of two halves, and the Vermont squad rallied from a 24-point deficit to send Enny Moustapha, Caroline Smith and Katie Wheeler in for tries, while Ashley Cook added two conversions in the second 40. The RNE was full of exciting games last weekend, including two ties and a one-try decision. Providence College garnered some attention after a 59-14 win over perennial conference finalist Stonehill and is making a case for itself early on.
Bloomsburg comes in at number six and was a final four team last year. The Mid-Atlantic squad beat East Stroudsburg 19-0 and has some rebuilding to do, especially after losing Nikki Snyder to graduation. While one player doesn’t make or break a season, Snyder was exceptional and made the USA Women’s National Team’s non-traveling reserve roster for the Super Series last summer. MARC has several team of interest, including Kutztown, which scored 126 unanswered points last weekend; St. Joseph’s, which put a good amount of points between Delaware, a post-season team last year; and York College, which is 2-0 after a close win over Shippensburg.
Bowdoin is now affiliated with the National Intercollegiate Rugby Association (NIRA), i.e., varsity league, and competing in Tier 2. The Polar Bears played a friendly against Tier 1 Brown and kicks off the season this weekend against Molloy. University of New England made the list after a 68-10 win over Molloy, which defeated Sacred Heart, rebounding from a shutout loss to Tier 1 Harvard.
Rocky Mountain champion Montana State is looking strong, and returned players like Maria Michelotti and Dallas Flager, who caught the attention of Women’s Collegiate All-American 7s coach Brandon Sparks. The Bobcats earned a 10-point win over Utah State, also on the watch list. On the other side of the league, Colorado Mesa is 3-0, posting big scores and earning a spot on the Top 20.
In the Ohio Valley, Cincinnati has restarted its winning streak with two big league wins, while Coast Guard earned a 45-point shutout over the University of Vermont in the New England Wide league. The three-team Allegheny sees a lot of wins traded between the teams, and right now, Slippery Rock is looking strongest after a 41-10 victory over Western Virginia, which defeated IUP 41-10 (9.21 Update: Erroneous score reports. WVU is actually 2-0 and added to Top 20 instead of Slippery Rock). Great Waters champion UW Steven’s Point earned a forfeit win against UW Platteville and gears up this weekend against Northern Michigan.
Finally, the Capital conference is also of interest. The competition participates in the spring championship, but the league will name its national playoff reps by the end of the year. Salisbury and Mary Washington, the traditional powerhouses, have suffered early-season losses, and so the radar has expanded. UMBC, William & Mary, Old Dominion and Towson (36-32 win over former DI Maryland) have all peaked attention.
DII COLLEGE FALL TOP 20 – SEPT 21, 2016
Rank Team (League Record). Notes
1 Davenport (1-0). Defeated Traverse City 135-0 (f), Saginaw Valley cancelled
2 Winona (1-0). Won 10th All-Minnesota tournament, defeated St. Cloud State 72-0
3 Ithaca College (3-0). Defeated Brockport 27-5, RIT 34-6, Oswego 85-0
4 Saint Michael’s (0-0). Friendlies: Defeated DI Boston 55-0, lost 24-19 to DI UCONN
5 Vassar (2-0). Defeated Siena 70-5, Albany 31-12
6 Bloomsburg (1-0). Defeated East Stroudsburg 19-0
7 Bowdoin (0-0). Lost friendly to DI Brown 42-14
8 Montana State (2-0). Defeated Boise State 77-0, Utah State 36-26
9 Kutztown (1-0). Defeated La Salle 126-0
10 Geneseo (2-0). Defeated Brockport 53-12
11 Cincinnati (2-0). Defeated Kentucky 55-5, Marshall 69-0
12 Albany (1-1). Defeated Stony Brook 50-7, lost 31-12 to Vassar
13 Colorado Mesa (3-0). Mines 54-10, Northern CO 97-5, UC Colorado Springs 105-0
14 Coast Guard (1-0). Defeated UVM 45-0
15 West Virginia (2-0). 9.21 Update: Erroneous score reporting originally listed Slippery Rock as Allegheny leader
16 Univ. New England (1-0). Defeated Molloy 68-10, lost friendly to DI Harvard 54-0
17 Providence (1-0). Defeated Stonehill 59-14
18 UMBC (1-0). Defeated Salisbury 37-19
19 UW Steven’s Point (1-0). Forfeit win vs. UW Plateville
20 Towson (1-0). Defeated DI Maryland 36-32
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