CIS Top Ten Tuesday (#6): UBC moves up to No. 1 in men’s soccer

Photo credit Bob Frid, UBC

OTTAWA (CIS) – The University of British Columbia Thunderbirds are the new team to beat in CIS men’s soccer.

In other CIS sports, there are no changes at the top this week as Wilfrid Laurier (women’s soccer), St. Francis Xavier (women’s rugby) and Guelph (women’s & men’s cross country) remain atop their respective national rankings.

In men’s soccer, the Thunderbirds (5-0-3) move up to No. 1 ahead of York (7-1-3) after being ranked second behind the Lions in each of the first five coaches’ polls of the campaign. The two powerhouses met in last year’s CIS final, with York prevailing 1-0.

UBC scored a huge 1-0 home win over No. 8 Trinity Western (4-2-2) Friday night in its lone outing of the past week, while York suffered its first conference loss on the same evening, 2-0 at No. 7 McMaster (7-2-3), before rebounding two days later with a convincing 5-1 win at Brock (3-7-3).

The top-ranked T-Birds hit the road this weekend to face Fraser Valley (1-6-1) and Victoria (4-2-2).

Rounding out the new men’s soccer top five are No. 3 Cape Breton (6-0-1), No. 4 Carleton (9-2) and No. 5 St. Francis Xavier (5-0-2).

In women’s soccer, 2010 CIS finalist Laurier easily improved to 10-0 in OUA action with a 3-0 defeat of Western (3-7) in its only contest of the past week. The Golden Hawks visit cross-town rival Waterloo (1-5-3) on Saturday and then return home to face Windsor (5-3-2) on Sunday.

Montreal (7-0-1), Trinity Western (8-1), UPEI (7-0) and UBC (7-1-1) follow in order in the new poll.

In women’s rugby, St. Francis Xavier (5-0), enjoying a break in the AUS schedule, travelled south on Thanksgiving weekend to face a pair of NCAA opponents. On Friday, in a clash of 2010 CIS and NCAA champions, the X-Women dominated Army 82-5. On Sunday, they blanked Brown 70-0.

StFX hosts Saint Mary’s (0-5) on Sunday as the CIS regular season comes to a close.
Undefeated Guelph (5-0), Lethbridge (3-0), Laval (5-0) and McMaster (5-0) round out the leading quintet this week.

In cross country, Guelph tops both men’s and women’s rankings for the third consecutive week. The Gryphons have captured the last six CIS women’s titles and five straight men’s banners – both all-time records.

McMaster and Victoria are still second and third on the women’s side, while Windsor and Western Ontario once again complete the men’s top three.

NOTE: The first CIS hockey and volleyball rankings of the season will be published next Tuesday, while the first basketball rankings are due Nov. 1st.

WOMEN’S SOCCER

(regular season record) / (votes) / (previous rankings)
1. Wilfrid Laurier (10-0-0) / 50 points / (1)
2. Montreal (7-0-1) / 44 / (2)
3. Trinity Western (8-1-0) / 41 / (4)
4. UPEI (7-0-0) / 30 / (5)
5. UBC (7-1-1) / 29 / (7)
6. Queen’s (10-1-1) / 28 / (3)
7. Alberta (6-2-0) / 23 / (6)
8. Sherbrooke (5-1-2) / 11 / (9) *
9. Toronto (8-1-3) / 11 / (NR)
10. Ottawa (8-3-1) / 3 / (8)

* Sherbrooke edges Toronto for the No. 8 spot thanks to a higher ranking the previous week.

Other teams receiving votes: Saint Mary’s (2).

MEN’S SOCCER

(regular season record) / (previous rankings)
1. UBC (5-0-3) / 59 points / (2)
2. York (7-1-3) / 51 / (1)
3. Cape Breton (6-0-1) / 47 / (3)
4. Carleton (9-2-0) / 41 / (5)
5. StFX (5-0-2) / 40 / (4)
6. Laval (5-1-1) / 32 / (6)
7. McMaster (7-2-3) / 17 / (NR)
8. Trinity Western (4-2-2) / 14 / (9)
9. Toronto (7-2-1) / 12 / (8)
10. McGill (4-2-1) / 7 / (10)

WOMEN’S RUGBY

(regular season record) / (votes) / (previous rankings)
1. StFX (5-0) / 79 points / (1)
2. Guelph (5-0) / 74 / (2)
3. Lethbridge (3-0) / 64 / (4)
4. Laval (5-0) / 61 / (3)
5. McMaster (5-0) / 49 / (5)
6. Concordia (3-2) / 34 / (6)
7. Alberta (2-1) / 32 / (7)
8. Queen’s (4-1) / 24 / (8)
9. McGill (3-2) / 16 / (9)
T10. Calgary (2-0) / 5 / (T10)
T10. UPEI (3-2) / 5 / (T10)

Other teams receiving votes: Trent (2), Brock (1), Acadia (1).

WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY

(points) / (previous rankings)
1. Guelph 99.1 points / (1)
2. McMaster 90.9 / (2)
3. Victoria 71.8 / (3)
4. Western Ontario 61.8 / (4)
5. Saskatchewan 48.2 / (6)
6. McGill 45.5 / (5)
7. Dalhousie 36.4 / (7)
8. Calgary 33.6 / (8)
9. Queen’s 20.9 / (9)
10. Toronto 11.8 / (10)

MEN’S CROSS COUNTRY

(points) / (previous rankings)
1. Guelph 98.3 points / (1)
2. Windsor 91.7 / (2)
3. Western Ontario 66.7 / (3)
4. Queen’s 63.3 / (4)
5. McMaster 58.3 / (6)
6. Victoria 50.8 / (5)
7. Regina 47.5 / (7)
8. Laval 40.0 / (8)
9. Calgary 19.2 / (9)
10. Toronto 10.0 / (10)

-CIS-