Field Hockey Stays At No. 1 In STX/NFHCA Poll
10/1/2002 8:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
Oct. 1, 2002
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The Maryland field hockey squad kept its top ranking in the fourth STX/NFHCA poll of the 2002 season, released Tuesday. The Terrapins (10-1, 0-1 ACC) have been ranked No. 1 in all four coaches polls this year, earning the top spot this week after defeating two straight top 15 opponents in then-No. 15 Princeton and then-No. 14 California.
With a starting line-up that includes six newcomers, Maryland opened the season with a seven-match win streak before falling in overtime to now-No. 3 Wake Forest on Sept. 21, and then put together another string of three straight victories. Maryland is 4-1 against this week's NFHCA top 20.
All five ACC field hockey schools rank in the top 20, with Wake Forest (7-2) ranking third and North Carolina (6-4) listed seventh. Also joining the Terps, Demon Deacons and Tar Heels in the top 20 is No. 12 Duke (6-3) and 18th-ranked Virginia (5-4).
The Terrapins continue their conference schedule with a match against the Cavaliers in Charlottesville on Suday, Oct. 6 at 1 p.m. Maryland plays a total of 10 regular season matches against teams listed in the third top 20 of 2002. Three more of the Terps' opponents received votes in this week's poll.
Here is a listing of the top 20 teams in the 2002 STX/NFHCA Division I National Coaches Poll, as voted upon by NFHCA member coaches, with records through September 29, 2002, and total points (first-place votes are in parentheses). Terrapin opponents are in bold italics.
Rank Institution (Record) Points (FPV) Prev. 1. MARYLAND (10-1) 589 (22) 1 2. Michigan (9-1) 536 2 3. Wake Forest (7-2) 535 (2) 3 4. Old Dominion (9-2) 530 (5) 4 5. Michigan State (10-1) 505 (1) 5 6. Penn State (8-1) 434 6 7. North Carolina (6-4) 410 7 8. James Madison (7-3) 382 8 9. Louisville (6-3) 355 11 10. Kent State (6-2) 300 10 11. Northeastern (7-2) 281 9 12. Duke (6-3) 279 13 13. Iowa (6-3) 248 12 14. Princeton (3-3) 180 15 15. Boston College (8-2) 163 17 16. California (6-3) 150 14 17. Delaware (6-4) 96 16 18. Virginia (5-4) 89 18 19. Syracuse (5-4) 47 20 20. Ohio State (4-5) 43 19ALSO RECEIVING VOTES: Maine (31), New Hampshire (25), Harvard (16), William & Mary (14), Lafayette (13), Central Michigan (11), Drexel (10), Ohio (10), Virginia Commonwealth (6), Hofstra (5), Dartmouth (3), Richmond (3), Cornell (1).
