9:30am | The Long Beach State women’s soccer team used three impressive victories last week to catapult themselves into the national discussion for the first time since 2008, earning the #24 ranking in the Soccer America Top 25 poll.

With big road wins against Fresno State, #21 Washington State and #16 Virginia Tech, the 49ers leapfrogged several teams to earn the national ranking and perhaps surprised some insiders who expected a slow start to the season. Last year, Long Beach State suffered its first losing season since 2004 and the team was selected to finish sixth in the Big West Conference this season.

“These two wins are huge for the confidence of our team and obviously for our program,” said head coach Mauricio Ingrassia following the Virginia Tech win, in a statement. “I am happy and proud for our kids but I also realize there is a lot of season left. We will celebrate today but we’ll be back to work tomorrow to get ready for our home games this weekend. We’re excited to play in front of our fans.”

But the team has shot out of the gate to a 3-1-0 record thus far, on the backs – or the legs? – of sophomore forward Nadia Link and junior keeper Emily Kingsborough. Link scored four goals in those three victories last week and was named the Big West Conference Offensive Player of the Week, while Kingsborough allowed just two goals and notched a shutout in those same three games to capture Defensive Player of the Week. She also tallied 13 total saves for a .867 save percentage.

This weekend, the 49ers will look to improve on their ranking when they host Utah State on Friday at 4:30pm and Sacramento State on Sunday at 1:00pm. Then we’ll see if they’re still expected to finish sixth in the conference.