After a slow start to their 2011 campaign, UCLA needed a big win on Friday against undefeated state rivals UC Santa Barbara.
And thanks to senior Chandler Hoffman’s hat trick, the Bruins got that all-important victory, continuing to move their season in the right direction after going winless in their first three games. Hoffman raised his goal total to seven on the young season.
MLSsoccer.com's Top 20
Rank |
School |
Record |
Last Week |
1 |
Maryland |
7-0-0 |
2 |
2 |
Connecticut |
6-0-0 |
3 |
3 |
Creighton |
6-0-0 |
4 |
4 |
Akron |
5-1-0 |
1 |
5 |
Louisville |
5-1-0 |
5 |
6 |
North Carolina |
5-1-0 |
6 |
7 |
Indiana |
5-0-2 |
8 |
8 |
Boston College |
5-1-0 |
10 |
9 |
UC Santa Barbara |
4-1-1 |
7 |
10 |
Central Florida |
6-0-1 |
15 |
11 |
UCLA |
4-2-1 |
11 |
12 |
UC Irvine |
7-1-0 |
12 |
13 |
Notre Dame |
4-1-2 |
13 |
14 |
Penn State |
5-1-0 |
14 |
15 |
St. John's |
5-1-1 |
16 |
16 |
New Mexico |
5-0-2 |
NR |
17 |
Georgetown |
4-1-2 |
NR |
18 |
West Virginia |
4-2-1 |
20 |
19 |
South Florida |
4-2-1 |
19 |
20 |
Virginia |
4-3-0 |
9 |
UCLA followed up the performance with a 1-0 win over San Diego on Sunday. Sophomore starlet Kelyn Rowe bagged the game winner one minute into the first overtime to send the Bruins home with their fourth straight victory.
Here’s how the rest of MLSsoccer.com’s top 20 fared this past weekend:
The growing pains for Akron continued, although the Zips emerged from two games with their unbeaten record intact. On Friday, they drew 1-1 with New Mexico. Star striker Darren Mattocks saw red in the second half, and the Lobos equalized in the final 10 minutes.
The Zips, who travel to Tulsa this weekend for yet another test, bounced back on Sunday with a 1-0 win over Cal Poly with Scott Caldwell scoring from the penalty spot.
There’s little that appears able to slow down Maryland in the early stages of the season. After needing overtime to eclipse University of Maryland Baltimore County, the Terps made easy work of North Carolina State. Mikias Eticha, Jereme Raley and John Stertzer all scored in a 3-1 victory, their seventh in as many games this season.
The Terrapins are on the road for their next two matches, facing Seton Hall on Tuesday before a weekend trip to Blacksburg to face Virginia Tech.
Connecticut also stayed unbeaten, scraping out a 1-0 result against Boston University. The Huskies had a difficult time cracking BU’s back line but finally managed the breakthrough via freshman Allando Matheson in the 79th minute.
UConn wrap up their four-game road swing against Boston College on Tuesday before opening their Big East schedule against St. John’s this coming weekend.
Creighton managed to keep up with Connecticut and Maryland in the ranks of the unblemished thanks to a 3-0 win over Providence. Senior forward Ethan Finlay led the way with a brace, and the Bluejays improved their record to 6-0.
Indiana continued their slow climb up the rankings. Depite coming away with just a 0-0 draw against St. John’s on Friday, the Hoosiers got back on track with a 2-0 win over Rutgers on Sunday. Blake Wise and A.J. Corrado scored the game’s only goals.
Travis Clark covers D.C. United, college and youth soccer for MLSsoccer.com.
