Super League Power Rankings – Week 34

We’re down to the final week of the regular season, and things couldn’t get any closer. Tampa Bay Sun FC locked in the No. 2 spot, while Brooklyn’s draw against Carolina eliminated it from playoff contention. Now, the final two spots will come down to Spokane Zephyr FC, Fort Lauderdale United FC and Dallas Trinity FC. 

Having home-field advantage for the semifinal match is huge for Tampa Bay, which finished the regular season with a 7-2-4 home record. The best-case scenario for the Sun would be Dallas or Fort Lauderdale finishing third, as Tampa Bay is undefeated against those two at home. On the other hand, a third-place finish for Spokane would be the toughest opponent for Tampa Bay, as Zephyr was the last visiting team to win at Riverfront Stadium and has scored the most goals (4) there as well. 

From the outside looking in is Dallas, which has now lost three games in a row and is sitting in fifth place. The team needs a result this weekend against Carolina to have a shot at the postseason, meanwhile the Ascent will be No. 1 no matter what. The teams are 1-1-1 against each other, so Saturday’s result could go either way. 

Rank		Team	Change	Summary
1		Carolina Ascent FC (13-5-9) Week 35: @ DAL	Last Week: 1	The Ascent extended their unbeaten streak to eight matches after playing Brooklyn to a scoreless draw last weekend. Carolina continues to have one of the most dominant defenses in the league, conceding only three goals during this undefeated stretch.
2		Tampa Bay Sun FC (12-6-10) Week 35: —	1 Last Week: 3	Tampa Bay closed out its regular season with a 3-0-1 run to secure second place in the standings. Cecilie Fløe scored her eleventh goal of the season in the win against DC, and she will be one of the biggest factors for the team in the semifinal match on June 7.
3		Fort Lauderdale United FC (11-8-8) Week 35: @ SPK	1 Last Week: 4	A combination play between Sh’Nia Gordon and Kiara Locklear resulted in Fort Lauderdale earning a much-needed win over Dallas on Saturday. FTL UTD has not been able to convert a lot of its chances in front of goal, but its strong defense has made up for the offensive struggles over the last few games.
4		Spokane Zephyr FC (11-8-8) Week 35: vs. FTL	2 Last Week: 2	Zephyr will have had over two weeks off since its last match by the time it plays Fort Lauderdale this Saturday. However, being back at home and knowing a win guarantees a place in the playoffs might be the edge Spokane needs to put on another strong performance.
5		Brooklyn FC (10-9-9) Week 35: —	1 Last Week: 6	Although the draw was not enough to keep Brooklyn in the playoff hunt, it still has a lot to be proud of from the performance. Brooklyn was the first team to hold Carolina scoreless in over two months, putting up a battle against the first-place club.
6		DC Power FC (5-14-8) Week 35: @ LEX	1 Last Week: 5	DC’s four-match scoring streak came to an end last weekend in the 2-0 loss to Tampa Bay. Power FC had a couple of good looks early on in the match, but once Tampa Bay got a hold on the tempo, it was too much of a challenge for DC to overcome.
7		Dallas Trinity FC (11-9-7) Week 35: vs. CAR	Last Week: 7	The Trinity have started to crumble over the last few weeks and have lost three consecutive matches for the first time this season. Now, the team needs a win over first-place Carolina Ascent to have a shot at potentially playing them again in the semifinal.
8		Lexington SC (4-18-5) Week 35: vs. DC	Last Week: 8	After taking Week 34 off, Lexington has a chance to close out the season at home this weekend against DC Power, which the Girls in Green have defeated in their last two meetings.