By AARON CRANFORD
A trio of top 10 teams, Washington, Georgetown and Marquette, blanked against conference foes during midweek action.
SBI No. 8 UCLA ended their small slump with a 2-1 victory against No. 1 Washington. The Bruins’ Leo Stolz banged in the first goal in the 15th minute, which brings his total to six for the season. However, the Huskies Josh Heard quickly answered with a sixth goal of his own in the 20th minute.
Stolz would not be outdone. Five minutes later he assisted Seyi Adekoya for the game-winning goal. Washington attempted more shots throughout the match and forced goalkeeper Earl Edwards Jr. to make six saves, but could not find an equalizer. Their record drops to 9-2-1, while the Bruins’ improve to 7-3-3.
The No. 9 Golden Eagles were stunned by junior Jeff Adkins’ sixth-minute goal on Wednesday, and were unable to find the back of the net for the remainder of the match. The Butler forward’s goal was his fifth of the year, and it helped Butler attain their first Big East conference win thus far. The Golden Eagles are now 7-3-1.
Two goals in the first half of play spurred Providence to a victory over No. 5 Georgetown Wednesday. Sophomore Mac Steeves put Providence ahead of the Hoyas, and Markus Naglestad added the second in the 38th minute to improve the Friars record to 7-2-1 this year. Georgetown fell to 7-2-4.
Here is a closer look at the top college matches during the midweek:
WEDNESDAY
(5) Georgetown 0, Providence 2. (Recap)
Butler 1, (9) Marquette 0. (Recap)
St. John’s 0, (11) Creighton 1. (Recap)
(14) Michigan State 4, Western Michigan 0. (Recap)
(24) UNC Wilmington 1, Elon 2. (Recap)
Maryland 2, Lehigh o. (Recap)
Delaware 2, Hofstra 1. (Recap)
SMU 7, Central Arkansas 0. (Recap)
South Florida 3, Denver 0. (Recap)
Xavier 2, DePaul 0. (Recap)
THURSDAY
San Diego State 1, (22) Oregon State 0. (Recap)
(8) UCLA 2, (1) Washington 1. (Recap)
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Surprised so many top teams are struggling this week? Think the results indicate bigger troubles on the horizon for any of them?
Share your thoughts below.