St. Frances cracked the Top 5 of the Maryland State Football High School Media Poll this week for the first time in program history and Annapolis debuted at No. 25.
St. Frances jumped from No. 8 after defeating then-No. 14 Calvert Hall, 14-0, in the MIAA A Conference opener Friday night. That win combined with an earlier win over Bishop Sullivan, Va. -- which defeated then-No. 5 Good Counsel on Sept. 30 -- spurred the Panthers' ascent.
St. Frances is 5-1 with the only loss to Paramus Catholic, N.J. in a game the Panthers were leading at the half.
McDonogh remains the Baltimore area's highest ranked team. The Eagles (4-1) did not play last week and are still No. 4 behind unanimous No. 1 DeMatha (6-0), the only team that beat them; No. 2 Wise (5-0) and No. 3 Damascus (5-0). Good Counsel (3-2) is No. 6.
Archbishop Spalding (4-1) dropped a spot to No. 7 despite rolling over Loyola Blakefield, 63-24. Mount Saint Joseph (4-1) remained at No. 8 after defeating Gilman, 34-20. Both teams suffered their losses to Good Counsel.
Howard (5-0) stuck at No. 10. Old Mill (5-0) moved up two spots to No. 13. Calvert Hall (3-2) dropped to No. 19 after the loss to St. Frances. Franklin (3-1) moved up two to No. 22.
Annapolis jumped into the poll for the first time this season, earning the No. 25 spot after beating Arundel 46-22 to improve to 5-0.
To see the entire poll, click here.