INDIANAPOLIS — Undefeated Maryland (16-0) and Boston College (17-0) would be the top two seeds in the 2019 NCAA Division I Women’s Lacrosse Championship if the season ended today.
The NCAA Division I Women’s Lacrosse Committee revealed its top 10 ranking today using the selection criteria and results through games of April 21. The Terrapins, 13-time national champions and Eagles, runner-up each of the past two seasons, are followed by North Carolina (12-3) and Syracuse (14-3) at third and fourth, respectively.
🚨 BREAKING 🚨#NCAAWLAX Committee Top-10 Rankings
— NCAA Lacrosse (@NCAALAX) April 24, 2019
1. @MarylandWLax
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4. @CuseWLAX
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🗣 @StanwickBurch breaks down the rankings pic.twitter.com/bTA6EMUkqm
“The committee has consistently conducted rankings during the season to prepare for selections and felt it was time to join our other sport committee peers in sharing our ranking to offer some insight into the process and build interest ahead of Selection Sunday for fans of women’s lacrosse,” said Amy Foster, chair of the committee and senior associate director of athletics at Cornell.
Seven-time national champion Northwestern (11-4) is fifth in the committee’s top 10, followed by three-time national champion Virginia (12-5) in sixth. The Ivy League is represented by three-time national champion Princeton (11-3) in seventh. The remainder of the ranking features Michigan (14-2) at eight, Notre Dame (13-3) ninth and Loyola Maryland (12-4) is 10th.
WOMEN'S LACROSSE RANKINGS: Inside Lacrosse | NCAA RPI | IWLCA
“Maryland and Boston College separated themselves from the pack with their undefeated records, especially against their high-quality strength of schedule. Their results in the ACC and Big Ten tournaments will be critical in which team ultimately claims the top seed,” Foster said. “These final 12 days of regular season and conference tournament competition are going to be very exciting for the committee and women’s lacrosse fans to watch, in addition to going a long way in impacting how those final six seeds are allocated. The résumés are so close that we could still see a lot of movement from where our rankings are at today and where they will end up on May 5.”
The reveal is based on the criteria used to select and seed the 28 teams for the Division I Women’s Lacrosse Championship and includes Rating Percentage Index (RPI), head-to-head competition, results versus common opponents, significant wins and losses and the evaluation of results versus the 10 highest-rated teams on a school’s schedule. Coaches’ polls and/or any other outside polls or rankings are not used by the committee for selection and seeding purposes.
On pace for the highest season average attendance in women’s @NCAALAX history‼️
— Maryland Women's Lacrosse (@MarylandWLax) April 19, 2019
One more game to wrap up our regular season home slate next Saturday vs. Hopkins on #MarylandDay, you won’t want to miss it! >> https://t.co/5fu1YgWfGP#FearTheTurtle pic.twitter.com/4AWD5DXdro
The 2019 championship field will consist of 15 automatic qualifiers and 13 at-large selections, which will be revealed Sunday, May 5 at 8 p.m. ET on NCAA.com. The top eight teams will be seeded, and the top six seeds receive first round byes, while the 7- and 8-seed will host first-round games.
The tournament begins with opening-round games on May 7 and 8 before the first round commences May 10. The championship will continue at campus sites for the second round (May 12) and quarterfinals (May 18-19) as teams look to earn a trip to Baltimore for the national semifinals.
CHAMPIONSHIP SEASON: Automatic qualifiers for 2019 NCAA women's lacrosse championship
For the first time since 2001, the women’s lacrosse championship returns to Homewood Field on the campus of Johns Hopkins with semifinals Friday, May 24 on ESPN3, followed by the national championship game Sunday, May 26 on ESPNU.
Tickets for the 2019 NCAA Women’s Lacrosse Championship at Johns Hopkins are available at ncaa.com/tickets/lacrosse-women/d1.
NCAA Division I Women’s Lacrosse Committee Top 10 ranking
(record through games of April 21)
- Maryland (16-0)
- Boston College (17-0)
- North Carolina (12-3)
- Syracuse (14-3)
- Northwestern (11-4)
- Virginia (12-5)
- Princeton (11-3)
- Michigan (14-2)
- Notre Dame (13-3)
- Loyola Maryland (12-4)
