Three Top-10 teams fall in men's soccer over Labor Day weekend

September 6, 2023
True to form, the first two weeks of the men’s soccer season have been utter pandemonium.
CollegeSoccer
Three Top-10 teams fall in men's soccer over Labor Day weekendThree Top-10 teams fall in men's soccer over Labor Day weekend
SOURCE: PITT_MSOC/X

The GIST: True to form, the first two weeks of the men’s soccer season have been utter pandemonium. Three Top-10 teams dropped games over the long weekend, creating chaos in yesterday’s poll drop — and some regional rivalry games last night.

The free fallers: The former No. 2 Kentucky Wildcats crashed to No. 19 in the rankings following their first regular-season loss since 2021, a 1–0 Friday heartbreaker against Wisconsin. Unfortunately for Wildcat nation, their offense continued to stall in last night’s 4–2 demolition by arch nemesis No. 7 Louisville.

  • Pitt’s scene was even more gruesome: Their 4–1 beatdown at the hands of Georgetown Friday dropped the former No. 8 squad out of the rankings entirely. Then No. 2 Marshall sealed the slide with a 3–1 dub on Pitt’s home pitch last night. Woof.

Saved by the draw: FIU also took a hit in the poll, slipping from No. 7 to No. 11 thanks to a frustrating, scoreless draw against Central Arkansas Friday. But unlike Pitt and Kentucky, they steadied themselves against a Top-25 regional rival last night, completing a late-game comeback to tie No. 14 UCF 2–2. Whew.

  • On the other hand, No. 8 James Madison immediately lost the momentum from their nine-point bump, finishing with a disappointing 2–2 draw against Gardner-Webb last night. What goes up…