UCF moves up three spots
Bigger moves occurred in round three of the Division I Spring College Ranking. Remember that the list is a reflection of where teams are today and not a prediction of where they’ll end up.
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For a third week in a row, Chico State is the top team. On Saturday, the Wildcats took a 50-0 halftime lead before defeating Humboldt 74-7. Inside center Hannah Westfall led all try-scorers with three, while fullback Darby McFall and lock Jenn Brissenden scored two apiece. Outside center Stefani Bergerhouse, flanker Ashley VonBargen (flanker), No. 8 Mo Ayala and wings Alyssa Pena and Trisha Rodriguez also scored. McFall kicked seven conversions for 24 points on the day.
Stanford is our second-place team in the Pacific Mountain West, but the results between the Cardinal, Davis, Humboldt and Cal have been all over the place. After falling just four points shy of Chico State, UC Davis took its third loss Saturday with a 36-34 defeat to the previously winless Cal. Humboldt played two close games against Stanford – including Sunday’s 36-27 decision a day after the Lumberjacks took a beating from Chico State – and had to come off the list at 0-4. The second half of the season is essentially here, so we’re looking forward to the adjustments to come.
Central Florida took the biggest jump, up three spots from #7, after a 58-12 win over Florida. Fullback Jessica Warner and backs captain Cortney Kuehl at outside center combined for seven tries to lead the scoreboard. Senior forwards captain Julia Phillips explained that returners comprise approximately half of the roster, and that there is a little more experience in the pack than backs. All of the veterans are pushing to build off last year’s playoff run.
“Last year’s playoff experience definitely impacted the team and really changed our outlook,” Phillips said of the third-place finish at the 2017 DI spring championship. “This is where we want to be, and all of the returning members want to get there again and go for it. We’ve been telling the new recruits that we’ve made it, for the most part, and we’re striving to do it again.”
Phillips pointed to new players like wing Julia Mortellaro and Maddie Ross as rookies to watch.
Also on the move, Grand Canyon gained two spots after downing CSU Northridge 56-12 in California. Wings Natasha Opoku (3) and Arisbel Gonzalez (2), and inside center Daeanera Tuaua (3) had multi-try days, while prop Jaime Massey and hooker Machaiah Lillard also scored. Erin Eschbach and Opoku (2) handled the extras. UC Santa Barbara is also 3-0 in the Gold Coast, banking a 55-5 win over Arizona State last weekend.
Washington State posted an intimidating win against Boise State – 127-0 – and we’ll be checking in with the team shortly to hear about some changes that have occurred in Pullman, Wash. Oregon State, which began the season with a close loss to the Cougars, got its first win of the season: a 38-14 decision against in-state rival Oregon. Western Washington (2-0) is on the watch list, having defeated Washington 34-27 on Saturday.
Mason Dixon is still in a dicey time of year weather wise, and conditions saw the Virginia Tech vs. South Carolina game canceled. North Carolina defeated unranked East Carolina 21-20, drawing the Tar Heels closer to the Gamecocks (the two played to a two-point decision in the fall). UNC has its tougher games ahead of it, including UVA this weekend, followed by James Madison, Pittsburgh and Virginia Tech.
