Sept. 5, 2006

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The Maryland field hockey team was ranked No. 1 in the first regular-season National Field Hockey Coaches Association Top 20 Coaches Poll. The reigning NCAA Champions are 4-0 after defeating Old Dominion on Monday, who is rated No. 3 in this week's ranking.

The Terps are 4-0 to start the season for the fifth-straight year. Maryland opened the home season yesterday with a 1-0 victory over the Lady Monarchs and has also posted a victory over the University of California, who is ranked 16th in the nation.

Four of the top five places in the poll are occupied by ACC teams as all six teams are among the top 11. Wake Forest is second, followed by No. 4 Duke and No. 5 North Carolina. Boston College jumped from 11th to ninth this week, while Virginia made the largest leap from 19th to 11th.

Maryland is in the midst of a six-game homestand. The Terps host the annual Terrapin Invitational this weekend, Sept. 9-10. On Saturday, Sept. 9, Maryland plays Temple at 11 a.m., followed by Northwestern and No. 12 American at 1 p.m. Parking is free until noon, due to the Terrapin football game vs. Middle Tennessee State. After noon, there will be a parking fee of $10 per car. On Sunday, The Terps play Northwestern at 1 p.m., with the Eagles and the Owls clashing at 3 p.m. Admission to the games at the Field Hockey & Lacrosse Complex is free.

#  Team (Record)        Points (1st place votes)
1. MARYLAND (3-0)       481 (12)
2. Wake Forest (4-0)    476 (10)
3. Old Dominion (3-0)   435
4. Duke (4-0)           432 (2)
5. North Carolina (3-0) 403 (1)
6. Ohio State (3-0)     309
7. Penn State (3-2)     307
8. Connecticut (3-1)    293
9. Boston College (2-1) 249
10. Louisville (3-1)    238
11. Virginia (2-1)      230
12. American (3-2)      193
13. James Madison (3-1) 167
14. Iowa (1-3)          140
15. Indiana (2-1)       138
16. California (4-1)    119
17. William & Mary (4-0) 96
18. Northeastern (1-1)   88
19. Richmond (2-0)       71
20. Michigan (0-4)       60

Also Receiving Votes: Hofstra (55), Providence (48), Delaware (30), Boston University (29), Villanova (28), Ohio (27), Pacific (26), Michigan State (23), Pennsylvania (16), Miami (OH) (14), Northwestern (8), Stanford (7), Drexel (6), Princeton (3), Towson (3), Cornell (2).

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