UNC women’s soccer ascent: the Tar Heels jumped from No. 7 up to hold at No. 1 behind a 10-1-0 start

North Carolina remain queens of DI women’s soccer, according to the latest United Soccer poll.

North Carolina remained No. 1 in this week’s United Soccer Coaches poll after beating No. 16 Virginia, while Texas Tech made the biggest jump of the week after knocking off No. 13 Colorado.

The United Soccer Coaches Week 7 poll was released Tuesday. The rankings are based on votes from United Soccer Coaches members and reflect games through Sunday.

The Tar Heels stayed at No. 1 after improving to 10-1-0 and receiving all eight first-place votes. Michigan State remained No. 2 at 8-1-2, while Vanderbilt held No. 3 at 10-0-1. Wake Forest moved up one spot to No. 4 at 9-1-0, while Alabama climbed from No. 7 to No. 5 at 11-1-0. Duke dropped two spots to No. 6 after being held to draws against Notre Dame and Pittsburgh.

North Carolina continued its strong run with a 3-1 win over Virginia on Friday. The Tar Heels scored three times in a three-minute span early in the first half, with Bella Devey scoring twice and Summer Denigan adding a penalty kick. Virginia got on the board in the second half, but North Carolina held on for its seventh straight win. Devey's two goals gave her 12 for the season, and the forward was named ACC Offensive Player of the Week.

Michigan State remained No. 2 after handing No. 18 Washington its first loss of the season, winning 3-0 on Sunday. The Spartans scored once in the first half before adding two more goals after the break. The loss ended Washington's 10-match unbeaten start to the season.

Vanderbilt stayed at No. 3 after defeating No. 9 Tennessee 3-1. Sydney Watts scored twice for the Commodores, while Megan Hinnenkamp added another goal as Vanderbilt improved to 10-0-1. Tennessee suffered its first loss of the season and dropped four spots to No. 13.

Alabama moved into the top five after beating No. 21 Oklahoma 3-1. Presley Williams and Zamorah Malinoski scored their first career goals, while Larkin Thomason added her team-leading ninth goal. The Crimson Tide improved to 11-1-0 and remained unbeaten in SEC play. Goalkeeper Madi Munguia made six saves in the win.

Ohio State climbed one spot to No. 7 after rallying from a halftime deficit to beat Iowa 3-1. Amanda Schlueter scored twice in the second half and reached 100 career points, becoming the first player in program history to reach the milestone. The Buckeyes improved to 8-1-1.

Stanford dropped two spots to No. 8 after playing SMU to a scoreless draw. The Cardinal held a 10-6 shot advantage in the first half, but SMU goalkeeper Aubrey Brown made nine saves to keep Stanford off the scoreboard.

Baylor moved up two spots to No. 9 after beating Cincinnati 2-1. The Bears improved to 9-1-1 and extended their unbeaten streak to eight matches, while UCLA climbed two spots to No. 10 after defeating Maryland 2-0. Oruha Hayashi scored twice in the final 20 minutes as the Bruins recorded their third straight shutout.

South Carolina made a major move in the poll, climbing six spots from No. 17 to No. 11 after a 3-0 win over Missouri. The Gamecocks improved to 10-1-0 and 4-0 in SEC play, putting them firmly into the top 15.

Texas Tech made the largest move in the rankings, jumping 11 spots from No. 25 to No. 14 after knocking off No. 13 Colorado 3-1. The Red Raiders trailed 1-0 at halftime before scoring three times after the break to complete the comeback. The win moved Texas Tech to 6-0-4 and pushed the Red Raiders into the top 15, while Colorado fell four spots to No. 17.

West Virginia also took a significant hit, dropping eight spots from No. 10 to No. 18 despite beating Iowa State 2-0. The Mountaineers' ranking slide came after losing to Baylor earlier in the week, leaving them at 6-1-2. Wisconsin also fell six spots to No. 20 after Rutgers handed the Badgers their first loss in nine matches, winning 3-1.

Clemson entered the rankings at No. 23 after previously receiving votes following a wild 3-3 draw with Boston College. The Tigers led 3-1 before Boston College scored in the 86th and 89th minutes to erase the deficit. Juju Harris scored once and assisted on Clemson's other two goals in the draw.

The United Soccer Coaches poll is voted on by coaches and reflects the week-to-week standing of Division I programs. The rankings are not used to determine NCAA tournament eligibility or selection.

25. Louisville, 8-1-2 (RV)

24. Harvard, 7-2-1 (NR)

23. Clemson, 6-2-3 (RV)

22. Texas State, 7-1-2 (24)

21. Oklahoma, 9-1-2 (21)

20. Wisconsin, 7-2-2 (14)

19. Utah State, 7-2-2 (19)

18. West Virginia, 6-1-2 (10)

17. Colorado, 8-2-1 (13)

15.Virginia, 5-2-2 (16)

15. Washington, 8-1-2 (18)

14. Texas Tech, 6-0-4 (25)

13. Tennessee, 6-1-3 (9)

12. Notre Dame, 4-0-6 (15)

11. South Carolina, 10-1-0 (17)

10. UCLA, 7-3-1 (12)

9. Baylor, 9-1-1 (11)

8. Stanford, 7-2-2 (6)

7. Ohio State, 8-1-1 (8)

6. Duke, 6-1-3 (4)

5. Alabama, 11-1-0 (7)

4. Wake Forest, 9-1-0 (5)

3. Vanderbilt, 10-0-1 (3)

2. Michigan State, 8-1-2 (2)

1. North Carolina, 10-1-0 (1)

*Luci Palacios is a student-intern at Penn State University.

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