Rank | Team | Comments | Prior | |
1 | UCLA | Bruins ride the nation's best defense and were very patient in the attack to win their first national title. | 1 | |
2 | Florida State | FSU was very elite defensively all year but fell just short in the final against UCLA. An excellent season overall. | 3 | |
3 | Virginia | Cavaliers lose in the College Cup Semi's in PK's. The 2013 season was still very historic and game changing for UVA. | 2 | |
4 | Virginia Tech | Outstanding season for the Hokies who played FSU tough in the semis but fell just short. Future is bright in Blacksburg. | 4 | |
5 | North Carolina | Carolina simply ran into a UCLA team on a mission and could not break down the Bruin defense in the Elite Eight. | 5 | |
6 | Michigan | Greg Ryan has gotten this Wolverine squad in prime position to breakthrough to the College Cup very soon. | 19 | |
7 | Santa Clara | Finished strong and benefitted from the tough schedule early. The Broncos are definitely dangerous moving forward. | 8 | |
8 | Texas A&M | Aggies have truly benefitted from being in the SEC and have established themselves as a top ten program annually. | 14 | |
9 | Florida | Gators had a strong overall season and probably would have gone deeper if they had hosted instead of traveled to Duke. | 9 | |
10 | Stanford | Recovered nicely from the mid-season slump to get back to the Sweet 16. The Cardinal will be back in 2014. | 21 | |
11 | Portland | Lost a tough shootout style match to Illinois in the second round. The Pilots are always going to be a tough out. | 10 | |
12 | Nebraska | A statement season for the Nebraska side, winning the Big Ten in a season that they should be able to be build on. | 12 | |
13 | Notre Dame | The Fighting Irish had a tough grind in the first ACC season. I suspect the close losses turn into wins in 2014. | 22 | |
14 | West Virginia | This WVU squad continues to own the Big 12 and should have received a better NCAA tourney draw. | 6 | |
15 | South Carolina | Tough loss to Stanford in the second round in Los Angeles. The Gamecocks reestablished themselves as a top SEC side. | 13 | |
16 | Marquette | The Golden Eagles are always going to be tough to play. The loss to Western Mich will be a huge test to respond to. | 7 | |
17 | Texas Tech | School record 18 wins further established Texas Tech's place as a rising power in the Big 12...and nationally. | 11 | |
18 | Duke | Showed great resilience in overcoming a rash of injuries and making it back to the Elite Eight. | NR | |
19 | Boston College | The Eagles got much better as the season went along and ended with a run to the Elite Eight. | NR | |
20 | Georgetown | Lost in the second round to a very strong Virginia side. The Hoyas though are primed to stay in the Top 15 regularly. | 18 | |
21 | Denver | Overall, another excellent season for the Pioneers despite the early exit in the NCAA tourney against Colorado. | 15 | |
22 | Wake Forest | A Sweet 16 loss at Virginia should position Wake to be a preseason top 20 side next year as long as they stay healthy. | 24 | |
23 | UCF | Despite the early exit from the NCAA tourney, UCF should be a perennial top 20 side moving forward. | 16 | |
24 | Illinois | It was a good recovery to finish the season strong as the defense improved enough to make a good NCAA run. | NR | |
25 | BYU | Two straight West Coast Conference titles is a huge accomplishment for the Cougars. | 17 |
2013 Women's Soccer Final Top 25 Rankings
Fri, 12/20/2013