MEN’S NEWS … Four more teams made their 2009 debut in the Soccer America Men’s Top 25. They all parlayed big wins on the road into spots in this week’s rankings:
PENN STATE. The Nittany Lions (7-3-0) remained perfect in the Big Ten with a 1-0 win at Michigan State on Sunday. They will be tested in the next month with conference games against No. 12 Northwestern and No. 15 Indiana and a non-conference match at No. 1 Akron.
UAB. The Blazers (7-2-1) extended their unbeaten streak to six games with a 1-0 win at ranked Kentucky on Sunday. A blast from 25 yards by South African midfielder Two-Boys Gumede was the difference. Two future Conference-USA opponents — South Carolina and Tulsa — have been in the Top 25 earlier this season.
CHARLOTTE. The 49ers (6-1-2) ended Wake Forest’s 46-match unbeaten streak against non-conference opponents when they shocked the Demon Deacons, 3-1, in Winston-Salem. Charlotte opens its Atlantic-10 season this weekend when it hosts George Washington and Richmond.
WEST VIRGINIA. The Mountaineers (5-2-2) won their fourth straight game with a 1-0 win over Marquette. They are tied for first place with Connecticut in the Big East’s Blue Division heading into Friday’s “Dollar Night” doubleheader with the Huskies. The men’s game will be featured on Fox Soccer Channel (live, 8 pm ET).
They upped the number of teams to have made at least one appearance in the Top 25 to 50. Only 12 teams have been in the Top 25 every week since the release of the preseason rankings in August:
* EVER-PRESENT DOZEN:
TEAM (RECORD) LAST WEEK:
1. Akron (9-0-0) 1
2. UCLA (6-1-1) 2
3. North Carolina (7-1-1) 5
4. California (7-2-0) 6
5. South Florida (7-1-1) 7
7. Wake Forest (6-2-1) 4
9. UC Santa Barbara (7-2-1) 12
10. Maryland (5-3-1) 3
11. Louisville (6-1-2) 20
12. Northwestern (5-1-3) 21
15. Indiana (5-3-1) 10
17. Boston University (7-2-2) 19
Men’s Player of the Week: Kyle Nakazawa (UCLA)
Men’s Team of the Week
* LOWE’S SENIOR CLASS FINALISTS:
Zak Boggs, South Florida
Ronnie Bouemboue, N.C. State
Richard Edgar, George Mason
Rylan Hawkins, Washington
Tennant McVea, Loyola (Md.)
Patrick Sampson, Loyola Marymount
Zack Schilawski, Wake Forest
Eric Weigman, IUPUI
Jason Yeisley, Penn State
Ben Zemanski, Akron
(Vote here.)