BIG EAST Notes - 10.13
Midway Point Status Check
The first half of league play wrapped up yesterday afternoon with No. 7/2 Georgetown topping visiting Villanova 5-1. With five games under everyone’s belts, DePaul remains undefeated with a 5-0-0 record and 15 points, followed by Marquette in second with 12 points and a 4-1-0 record. The Hoyas remain unbeaten in league play in third place with a 3-0-2 record and 11 points, followed closely by fourth-place Providence (10 points; 3-1-1) and fifth-place Creighton (nine points; 3-2-0). If the season ended today, St. John’s would complete the field of the BIG EAST Championship as the No. 6 seed, as the Red storm show a 1-2-2 record for five points.
DePaul’s Postseason Destiny
DePaul can clinch a spot in the BIG EAST Championship six-team field with a win or draw on Saturday at St. John’s. The Blue Demons currently have a league-best 15 points, with a win bumping them up to 18 with three games remaining. Five teams (St. John’s, Butler, Seton Hall, Villanova, Xavier) would be unable to catch DePaul should it get to 18 points, meaning the Blue Demons could finish no lower than fifth, while a draw to improve to 16 points would leave four teams out of reach (all the above minus Butler), meaning they could finish no lower than sixth. The top six teams at season’s end qualify for the BIG EAST Championship, with the top two seeds earning byes into the Semifinals.
On The National Scene
A pair of BIG EAST teams earned notable leaps up the NCAA RPI ledger this week, including Marquette which shot up seven spots to No. 34 – its best of the season. The Golden Eagles have won four straight, including three consecutive shutouts, to improve to 8-5-2 on the year, including 4-1 in BIG EAST play. Creighton had the biggest jump of any league team, vaulting up 41 spots to break back into the top 100 at No. 95. The Bluejays are coming off back-to-back shutout wins. Georgetown continued to be among the national leaders at No. 5, while standing at No. 7 in the NSCAA Top 25 and moving up one to No. 2 in the
Soccer America Poll. The Hoyas are unbeaten over their last 12 contests.
Tune In
BEDN is your home for the remainder of the BIG EAST women’s soccer slate as all 20 regular-season games left will stream on the FOX Sports GO app. Saturday features a trio of games: Villanova at Xavier (Noon, ET), DePaul at St. John’s (1 p.m.) and Creighton at Providence (1 p.m.). Sunday kicks off at 1 p.m. when Seton Hall visits Butler before No. 7/2 Georgetown visits Marquette at 2 p.m.
Weekly Schedule/Results
Wednesday
#7/2 Georgetown 5, Villanova 1*
Saturday
Villanova at Xavier, Noon*^
DePaul at St. John’s, 1 p.m.*^
Creighton at Providence, 1 p.m.*^
Sunday
Seton Hall at Butler, 1 p.m.*^
#7/2 Georgetown at Marquette, 2 p.m.*^
*BIG EAST Contest
^BEDN