The battle begins as conference playoffs are underway. /// Photo: Colleen McCloskey •
There have been a couple of moves, but this DII college fall ranking also serves as an update to conferences’ state as regards fall playoffs. Keep in mind, the conferences reviewed below are those that have ranked teams. Ohio Valley, New England Small College, Illinois – individual write-ups will address those competitions.
DII COLLEGE FALL TOP 20
Rank (Previous Rank) Team (League Record). Results
1 (1) Davenport (3-0). Defeated Oakland 66-5 (f)
2 (2) Winona (5-0) Oct. 22 game v Mankato is a forfeit
3 (3) Vassar (5-0). Lost 38-34 to DI West Chester (f)
4 (4) Bloomsburg (5-0). Defeated Lock Haven 60-0
5 (5) New England (3-0). Lost 29-12 to DI Norwich
6 (6) Bowdoin (2-1). Defeated Castleton 85-0
7 (7) St. Michael’s (3-0). Defeated St. Anselm’s 95-10
8 (8) Montana State (5-0) Idle
9 (9) Kutztown (4-0). Defeated Delaware 60-19
10 (10) Buffalo State (7-0). Defeated Oswego 50-0
11 (11) Buffalo (5-1). Defeated Brockport 27-7
12 (12) Geneseo (5-1). Defeated Fredonia 102-0
13 (13) Albany (4-1). Idle
14 (14) Colorado Mesa (7-0). Idle
15 (15) Coast Guard (5-0). Defeated Smith 68-0
16 (16) Towson (3-0). Idle
17 (unr) UW Eau Claire (4-0). Defeated UW Platteville in forfeit win
18 (18) West Virginia (3-0). Defeated Slippery Rock 42-10
19 (19) Mary Washington (2-1). Idle
20 (17) Utah State (1-3). Lost 34-33 to Boise State
CAPITAL
After this weekend, the quarterfinals will be set for Oct. 29, and they’ll go a long way in translating the results across three pools. At present, Towson, UMBC, George Mason and George Washington have clinched post-season berths, and this weekend will sort out the rest. Among the Games to Watch: Mary Washington vs. William & Mary (which is NSCRO but still 3-0 in DII) and Towson vs. UMBC for ranking purposes. We’re watching Old Dominion against VCU, too. The playoffs will go a long way in putting the fall’s results into perspective.
GREAT LAKES
Davenport repeated as conference champion and did so easily. This weekend sees the Panthers line up against DI Notre Dame College in a friendly that will provide some much needed competition in advance of playoffs. The Falcons are 3-0 against Davenport at home. The conference receives two berths to the Round of 32, and that spot goes to Grand Valley State.
GREAT WATERS
UW Steven’s Point fell off the rankings after a 69-5 loss to UW LaCrosse. UW Eau Claire beat LaCrosse earlier in the season and will play UWSP on Oct. 29. We’re talking to South pool leader Marquette (5-0) this week, and they’ll save their big test for Oct. 29 against Univ. Illinois-Chicago. The North vs. South final takes place on Nov. 6, and the pool runners-up will contest a third-place match for consideration in the Round of 32.
MARC
Bloomsburg won its 13th-straight conference game since last year, shutting out Lock Haven 60-0. On the other side of the conference, Kutztown bettered Delaware 60-19, but it was a battle for the eventual victors. The Blue Hens were relentless in the breakdown, and the match could have gotten away from the Golden Bears when two of its flankers were yellow-carded in the first half. Led by senior No. 8 Amy Stotek, the Kutztown forwards buckled down in-tight so the wide-open attack could flourish. Coach Sean Cobb had this to say about the encounter:
The University of Delaware is a good team. They gave us all we could handle. They kept us under pressure for so long that we ended up committing silly penalties that lead to two yellow cards. We will be working on our discipline to make sure these things don’t happen again. The score line does not reflect how close this match was. At no point did I feel like Delaware was out of the match.
Also-undefeated St. Joseph will play Kutztown this weekend in a Game to Watch, and the conference final four will be contested Nov. 5-6. Click here for current standings.
NEW ENGLAND WIDE
Coast Guard posted its fifth-straight shutout against Smith, 68-0, last weekend. This weekend is potentially the Bears’ best opponent since the opening game against University of Vermont, as 4-1 University of New Hampshire lines up. UNH served New Haven a 41-5 loss last weekend.
NIRA
The University of New England and Bowdoin are the front-runners for the Tier 2 varsity final, and the pair played very different games last weekend. The Nor’easters took on DI Norwich in a cross-tier match and fell short 29-12 – a very good result. The Polar Bears blanked Castleton 85-0 and saw flanker Paige Pfannenstiel score seven of Bowdoin’s 13 tries while fullback Georgia Bolduc dotted down three times. Details for the Tier 2 finals have not yet been released aside from date and location.
NORTHERN LAKES
Winona has had a similar experience to Davenport during conference play, except its typically best competition – Mankato State – has fallen off this year and is forfeiting this weekend’s match. St. Cloud State and North Dakota have 3-1 records and play each other this weekend.
ROCKY MOUNTAIN
After two 10-point losses to Montana State, Utah State dropped a 34-33 contest to Boise State. The team suffered some injuries in the match and had players in different positions, which speaks to depth. And conference first-years Boise State rallied at the buzzer for the win. Utah State qualifies for playoffs alongside the North’s Montana State, and it’s the two close contests against the reigning conference champ that keep Utah State on the rankings, barely. The South sends 7-0 leader Colorado Mesa and most likely Colorado Mines, which is 4-2 before tonight’s game against Northern Colorado and Saturday’s match versus CU Colorado Springs. The final four occurs Oct. 29-30 in Greeley, Colo.
RUGBY NORTHEAST
With St. Michael’s lengthening its lead over the field – it defeated St. Anselm’s 93-10 last weekend – the real race is for second and third in terms of post-season berths. There are still three weeks of play, and this weekend’s match between Roger Williams and Providence will highlight teams that have been playing well this fall.
TRI-STATE
The conference held its wild card round and launches into quarterfinals this weekend. Vassar spent the bye weekend playing a friendly against DI varsity West Chester and nearly pulled off the win in a 38-34 defeat. The Brewers play Fairfield, while also-ranked Albany sees Hofstra. Read more on this weekend’s Round of 8.
UPSTATE NEW YORK
All three ranked teams won their Week 7 matches as expected, but the final two weekends promise more excitement. Reigning champion Ithaca takes on Geneseo Saturday and the Buffalo State Oct. 29. Buffalo and Geneseo play Oct. 29 as well. The league then contents a final four Nov. 5-6, meaning teams will have at least 10 games behind them when they reach the fall Round of 32. This is when numbers are important!
#FallRanking DIICollege