Spartans Drop to No. 17 in Latest Women’s Soccer Poll

KANSAS CITY, Kan. - The University of Tampa women's soccer is now ranked No. 17 in the latest NSCAA/Continental Tire NCAA Division II poll.

Tampa is now 10-1 (0-1, SSC) on the season and drops out of the top-10 for the first time this season after starting the year at No. 8 in the preseason poll. UT has now been ranked all six weeks this season, including three weeks in the national top-five.

UT and Rollins are the lone SSC schools in the top-25. The Tars are currently ranked at No. 14. Regional foe West Florida sits at No. 8 as it looks to defend its national championship crown.

Last week, Tampa defeated Eckerd 2-1 at home and suffered its first loss of the season at Rollins by a final score of 2-0. UT was shutout for the first time this year after limiting its opponents without a goal in eight of 11 matches this season.

Offensively, Cici Gonzalez leads all Spartans with nine goals and four assists. The sophomore ranks tenth in the nation in goals and ninth in points. She is also 26th in goals per game and 21st in points per game.

Emily Jones leads all Spartans with eight assists, which ranks third in the nation as she also places seventh in assists per game. Jenny Karl and Jess Frank each have six assists, ranking 11th nationally.

Tampa's defense has registered eight shutouts and outscored its opponents 41-5 through 11 games. Alyson Gregorowicz has stepped in for Kori Butterfield and now owns a 0.84 GAA with two shutouts. The converted senior defender also has 18 saves to lead all Spartans.

As a team, UT ranks third in the nation in scoring offense (3.373) and first in assists (4.45). The Spartans are also eighth in shutout percentage (.727), and 12th in GAA (0.453).

UT has now been ranked for 13 consecutive weeks. Additionally, UT has earned a mention in the poll in a total of 12 seasons, including 11 straight. Head coach Gerry Lucey is also on the verge of a personal milestone as he has 96 career wins at UT. He is already the all-time winningest coach in program history.

The Spartans return to action tonight to take on Florida Tech at 7:30 p.m. The Panthers sport an overall record of 6-2 (1-1, SSC) and most recently defeated Eckerd by a score of 3-0. Tampa is 14-3 in the all-time series and came away with a 4-1 victory last season in Tampa.

Live stats and a video broadcast will be available through TampaSpartans.tv.