Spartans up to No. 20 in Soccer America poll

GREENSBORO, N.C. – UNCG's women's soccer team is ranked No. 20 in this week's Soccer America Top 25 Poll, up one spot from last week.

Winners of eight straight games, the Spartans are off to a school-record 11-1-1 start, including a 6-0-0 mark in Southern Conference play. The eight-game winning streak is tied for the fourth-longest active streak in the nation.

UNCG beat The Citadel 3-0 and College of Charleston 2-1 last weekend.

UNCG is one of just 20 teams nationwide with at least 11 wins, and its .885 winning percentage is tied for seventh in NCAA Division I.

This is the third straight week and fourth overall this season that UNCG has been ranked by Soccer America. The Spartans entered the rankings on Aug. 30 at No. 18 but fell out after suffering its only loss of the season at Cal State Fullerton. UNCG re-entered the poll on Sept. 27, tying for 25^th, before moving up to No. 21 on Oct. 4.

The Spartans are also ranked in the NSCAA/Hendrickcars.com poll for the first time since the 1997 season, coming in last week at No. 24. This week's poll will be released Tuesday.

UNCG is a season-high 23^rd in this week's TopDrawerSoccer.com Women's Tournament 64 Ranking, a projection of the NCAA tournament bracket.

The Spartans are well on their way to their fifth straight regular-season SoCon title, as UNCG is the only league team without a loss or tie in conference play. The Spartans are a full two games clear of second-place The Citadel and Samford, who both own 4-2-0 league records. UNCG has beaten both of those teams this season.

UNCG returns to action on Friday, Oct. 15, at Wofford in Spartanburg, S.C. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.

Soccer America Top 25 Poll
TEAM (W-L-T) LAST WEEK
1. Stanford (11-0-2) 1
2. North Carolina (11-1-1) 3
3. Portland (13-1-0) 4
4. Maryland (11-1-1) 5
5. Notre Dame (13-1-0) 7
6. Boston College (9-3-1) 2
7. Florida State (10-2-0) 9
8. Virginia (8-3-1) 6
9. Oklahoma State (12-1-1) 10
10. Texas A&M (11-3-0) 11
11. BYU (11-1-1) 12
12. Florida (10-2-2) 8
13. South Carolina (11-2-2) 14
14. UCLA (8-4-1) 13
15. Santa Clara (8-3-2) 15
16. Ohio State (10-2-1) 218
17. Illinois (9-2-1) 17
18. UCF (9-2-3) 19
19. UC Irvine (12-1-2) 20
20. UNCG (11-1-1) 21
21. Denver (12-2-0) 22
22. Marquette (10-3-2) 23
23. Minnesota (10-2-2) 24
24. USC (8-3-2) NR
25. Siena (12-0-0) 25
25. New Mexico (8-1-3) 25
25. Virginia Tech (8-5-0) NR
(Records through games played Oct. 10.)

- UNCG -