HS: FAB 50 clashes lead to regional changes

by Sheldon Shealer

October 7, 2019

Here's a rhetorical trivia question ... When was the last time Houston (Tenn.) girls and Peoria Notre Dame (Ill.) and Salesianum (Del.) boys lost in the same week?

Chances are the answer is more than a decade ago.

But it happened last week -- not surprisingly, really -- and it leads to three new regional No. 1s this week.

All three teams lost to other SIMA FAB 50-ranked programs.

Peoria Notre Dame went into its match with St. Ignatius (Ohio) on Friday as the No. 1 team in the Mid-East region and in the SIMA FAB 50. St. Ignatius, the No. 1 team in its region and No. 3 in the SIMA FAB 50 emerged with a 2-0 victory with a pair of late second-half goals. The result allows Libertyville (Ill.), despite a tie last week, to swap places with Peoria Notre Dame for No. 1 in the Mid-East. Interestingly, those teams clash later this season.

In another clash of unbeatens, St. Benedict's Prep (N.J.), the No. 1 team in the East region, edged Salesianum, the top-ranked team in the Mid-Atlantic, on Saturday. Coupled with other Mid-Atlantic surprises, Cardinal Gibbons (N.C.) returns to the top spot in the regional rankings this week.

Earlier in the week, Briarcrest Christian (Tenn.) halted Houston's (Tenn.) perfect season in a clash of SIMA FAB 50-ranked girls programs. Houston hands over the reigns of the Mid-East region No. 1 to Brentwood (Tenn.). Houston and Brentwood are in the same playoff classification and could see each other later this fall.

See the latest list of state and regionally ranked teams, which features more than 300 of the nation's top fall-playing teams.

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FALL REGIONAL RANKINGS: BOYS (Oct. 7) | GIRLS (Oct. 7)

FALL STATE RANKINGS: BOYS (Oct. 7) | GIRLS (Oct. 7)