HS: Fall FAB 50 rankings, Sept. 4

by Sheldon Shealer

September 4, 2018

The boys Top 10 from last week combined to go 11-0. The girls Top 10 went 10-0-1.

Already, the preseason favorites are starting to distance themselves from the pack.

Boys top-ranked St. Benedict's Prep (Newark, N.J.) rolled up 18 goals in a pair of wins against out-of-state opponents. Meanwhile, girls top-ranked Houston (Germantown, Tenn.) rolled to three wins in the Bearden Invitational. McDonogh School (Owings Mills, Md.) looked sharp in a pair of comfortable wins at the Lady Eagle Invitational in Indiana.

This week, a couple of key girls matches could greatly influence the FAB 50 national title chase as No. 4 Northern Highlands (Allendale, N.J.) travels to Houston while Portland Jesuit (Portland, Ore.) clashes with Camas (Wash.).

BIG MOVERS: BOYS: Loyola (Towson, Md.). With seven returning starters, Loyola was projected as a contender in the ultra-competitive MIAA. The team now is making a push for national accolades. Loyola opened the season with a 6-0 win over Shipley School (Pa.), a team that played to minbi-game scrimmage ties with Top 25-ranked Conestoga and Springside Chestnut Hill. The result moves Loyola from No. 27 to No. 15 this week. ... GIRLS: Sacred Heart Academy (Louisville, Ky.). Sacred Heart used its depth to win both matches it played on one day at the Lady Eagle Invitational. SHA capped the event with a come-from-behind win over fellow FAB 50-ranked Noblesville (Ind.).

NEWCOMERS: BOYS: No. 27 Haverford School (Haverford, Pa.), No. 29 Quincy (Ill.), No. 30 Eric Solorio Academy (Chicago, Ill.), No. 39 Zionsville (Ind.), No. 40 Washington (Ind.), No. 46 Boulder (Colo.), No. 47 Olathe West (Olathe, Kan.), No. 48 West Morris Mendham (Mendham, N.J.), No. 49 Bishop Miege (Roeland Park, Kan.) and No. 50 La Cueva (Albuquerque, N.M.). ... GIRLS: No. 18 Archbishop Spalding (Severn, Md.), No. 34 Pickerington North (Pickerington, Ohio), No. 46 Massapequa (N.Y.), No. 47 Ravenwood (Brentwood, Tenn.), No. 48 Syracuse (Utah), No. 49 Franklin (Tenn.), No. 50 Greenwood (Bowling Green, Ky.).