Maryland takes the throne as Division I NFHCA poll gets a midseason shake-up

Maci Bradford and Alyssa Klebasko are key contributors to Maryland’s undefeated 2026 season.

There is a new No. 1 in Division I field hockey — and Maryland did not back into the top spot.

The 12-0 Terrapins collected 10 of 11 first-place votes in the October 13 National Field Hockey Coaches Association poll, vaulting past Northwestern and putting an exclamation point on the nation’s last perfect record.

The NFHCA poll is published every Tuesday throughout the college field hockey season.

Northwestern, now 13-1, slips one place to No. 2 but remains firmly in the title conversation. UConn climbs to No. 3, Massachusetts to No. 4 and Harvard to No. 5, giving the top five a fresh look as the regular season tightens and every ranked result carries extra weight.

Behind the leaders, Harvard and Wake Forest each surged two places, landing at No. 5 and in a tie for No. 6, respectively. Liberty and Lafayette made the week’s biggest moves, jumping three spots apiece to No. 14 and No. 17.

UConn, Massachusetts, Princeton, Indiana, Miami and Michigan also gained ground, each moving up one place as the postseason picture began to sharpen. The Princeton Tigers were the ones to knock off Northwestern, in what felt like a redemptive match after losing to the Wildcats in the 2025 NCAA Division I national championship.

Maryland, powered at both ends of the field, has Maci Bradford, who has supplied production and playmaking, ranking among the national leaders at 0.91 assists per game through October 12, while Alyssa Klebasko in cage has anchored the defense.

Together, they have helped the Terrapins turn an unbeaten start into the nation’s top ranking.

UConn’s climb to No. 3 has carried its own clutch signature.

Lucy Zich scored twice, including the winner, against then-No. 14 Liberty on her way to NFHCA Offensive Player of the Week honors in late September.

Goalkeeper Natalie McKenna followed with eight saves across shootout wins over Providence and then-No. 3 UMass, then stopped four more attempts in the shootout against the Minutewomen.

Harvard has found its spark in senior forward Sage Piekarski, who delivered three goals and an assist in wins over Penn and then-No. 5 Wake Forest.

Against the Demon Deacons, she set up the equalizer and scored the game-winner, a decisive sequence for a Crimson team that has won 10 of 11 and climbed two spots.

Wake Forest has leaned on a deeper set of options during its rise. First-year forward Bianca Rees-Gibbs has scored 12 goals in 13 games, including three against ranked opponents in a breakout week, and ranks seventh nationally at 0.92 goals per game.

With Ava Moore adding nine goals and Mia Montag contributing seven assists, the Demon Deacons have developed multiple ways to pressure a defense as the schedule intensifies.

According to the NFHCA, “the poll is intended to provide a weekly snapshot of the nation’s top-performing programs based on results, strength of competition, and insight from the sport’s coaching community. Beginning after the second week of regular-season competition, teams must maintain a .500 record or better to be eligible for ranking consideration.  

“These rankings reflect the collective assessment of the designated voting coaches each week and are designed to spotlight performance on a national scale. The Coaches Polls are independent of the NCAA Championship selection process and are not intended to predict or determine postseason qualification or seeding.”  

Here are the DI college field hockey teams with the most votes in the NFHCA week seven coaches poll: 

20. Monmouth, 8-3 (18)

19. Virginia, 6-5 (15)

18. Michigan, 6-6 (19)

17. Lafayette, 11-2 (20)

16. Louisville, 9-5 (16)

15. California, 7-5 (14)

14. Liberty, 9-4 (17)

13. Syracuse, 7-4 (11)

12. Miami, 8-4 (13)

11. Indiana, 9-3 (12)

10. North Carolina, 7-5 (9)

9. Princeton, 8-4 (10)

8. Duke, 10-3 (3)

6. Wake Forest, 9-4 (8)

6. Iowa, 11-2 (6)

5. Harvard, 10-1 (7)

4. Massachusetts, 13-1 (5)

3. Connecticut, 10-1 (4)

2. Northwestern, 13-1 (1)

1. Maryland, 12-0 (2)

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