Today we unveil our latest update to Grande TeamRank, the comprehensive ranking system for elite club soccer teams nationwide, and we release the latest standings for U16, U17 and U18 Girls. Next week, we will update the younger age groups on the Boys side. We will update our National Top 25 of each age group at least once per month.

(scroll down for system details)

New No. 11 at U16

Real Colorado ECNL U16, last season’s runner up at the ECNL National Finals, started this season with three wins and takes over as No. 11. Neil Payne’s squad has had no trouble scoring, even without the firepower of U17 WNT striker Mallory Pugh, who will spend much of the fall away on national team duty. Forward Cydney Billups has picked up the slack and has already tallied five goals in the process.

Michigan Hawks ECNL climbs from No. 113 to No. 110 after knocking Eclipse Select from the top spot. The Hawks defeated last year’s ECNL champion 2-0 on goals from Allison Winterfield and Natalie Winters.

Rush/Hawks start strong at U17

Colorado Rush is off to a 3-0 start in its new ECNL conference and climbs from No. 114 to No. 19 in the Grande TeamRank standings. Rush took care of last season’s top two finishers in the Midwest Conference (Eclipse Select and Minnesota Thunder) by 3-1 and 2-1 margins, respectively, and established themselves as the team to watch in this new ECNL alignment.

Michigan Hawks ECNL, just as their counterparts in the U16 age group, started the 2013-14 season with four wins and climbs from No. 113 to No. 110. This Hawks team is loaded with IMG Academy 150 players including Zoe Morse, North Carolina commit Kate Morris, Courtney Petersen, and Notre Dame commit Cassie Phillips and should continue to move toward the No. 11 spot as the season progresses.

Sting perfect early at U18

Dallas Sting has one last shot at becoming ECNL National Champion. After finishing as ECNL runner up for the last two seasons, Antonio Pecorari’s squad is off to a good start once again in conference play and remains at No. 12. Notre Dame-bound forward Emma Heckendorn has two goals so far while Courtney McKeon and Denise Rodriguez have combined in goal to earn two shutouts in as many games.

Real So Cal ECNL is quietly climbing the ranks from No. 111 to No. 18, taking care of new conference foes SC del Sol and Sereno, in addition to earning a tie with veteran SoCal Conference member No. 16 Slammers in the first two weeks of competition. To go one better than Sting, goalkeeper Ella Dederick is perfect so far, earning three shutouts. 

Next Thursday: U13, U14, and U15 Boys

TeamRank is the comprehensive team-ranking system devised by TopDrawerSoccer.com to provide an objective and common-sense approach to determining which elite youth soccer teams are the best in the nation.

The rankings, updated monthly, are primarily results-based, with a nod toward the league and championship competitions that emulate how excellence is determined in leading soccer nations around the world.

Tournaments are also included but at a reduced value due to the many mitigating factors involving such events, including attrition and guest players.

A final layer of executive evaluation is provided to account for variables that often impact results, thus ensuring that the monthly lists are not subjective, but are not purely mechanical.

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