Rutgers won this past weekend in their home opener against Buffalo. The 2-1 victory led to the Scarlet Knights fourth straight win to open the season and remain undefeated. Despite all of that, they have fallen in the latest poll.
After what was definitely the best season in program history last year, started the season ranked sixth in the nation in the preseason United Soccer Coaches Top 25 Division I Women’s Poll. Following a dominant first three contests, the women’s soccer squad reached as high as No. 3 in the poll. Despite winning again and being one of only five ranked teams with four victories and no losses, Rutgers has stumbled down the charts and settled in at No. 9 in the latest edition, released Tuesday.
So to recap. Rutgers is 4-0. Last week they were ranked third in the nation following two wins to open the season. They beat a solid Buffalo program on Sunday (the Bulls went 13-4-3 last year). And somehow, Rutgers dropped nine spots.
[lawrence-related id=18283]
Every team above them is also undefeated, but four of those teams – Penn State, BYU, TCU, and South Carolina – have a tie on their record. ACC powerhouse North Carolina clocked in at No. 1 in the ranking, a unanimous selection for consecutive weeks.
Rutgers is one of four Big Ten teams in the top 25 and one of two, alongside Penn State, to crack the top 10. The Nittany Lions finished one spot above the Scarlet Knights.
Kylie to Riley for Yurcak's first goal of 2022.#WeNeverStop /// #ForeverRutgers pic.twitter.com/XzfxLw88zq
— RUTGERS WOMEN’S SOCCER (@RUWSoccer) August 28, 2022
Rutgers has game two of a six-game homestand scheduled for Thursday, September 1 against the Temple Owls. They should continue their hot start to the season and see a rebound in next week’s poll.
[mm-video type=playlist id=01fc3gzhz7qrm49z6q player_id=none image=https://rutgerswire.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]