League One Power Rankings

League One Power Rankings - Week 21

By ETHAN TRIEBSCH - ethan.triebsch@uslsoccer.com, 08/11/23, 4:00PM EDT

New leader in the Power Rankings for the first time since Week 13

With three consecutive losses, Northern Colorado slip out of the top spot for the first time since Week 13, while every club aside from Greenville is on the move.

How long can North Carolina go without conceding a loss? When is it time to panic for the table bottom three of Lexington, Central Valley and Chattanooga? Tell us why your club should rank higher and keep the conversation going on Twitter at @USLLeagueOne.

Biggest Movers

4 OMA

2 NCO, CLT, RIC, CV

Rank	Team	Change	Summary
1	North Carolina FC (11-4-5) Week 22: @ RIC, v. GVL	1 Last Week: 2	Now enjoying its longest unbeaten streak since 2011, North Carolina FC extended its position atop the table with a 2-2 draw in Richmond on Wednesday. Three upcoming fixtures against Greenville, Richmond and Northern Colorado be huge in NCFC’s claim to the top of the table.
2	Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC (10-4-5) Week 22: v. OMA	2 Last Week: 1	After racing out to the best start in league history, the Hailstorm are in the midst of a club-record losing streak of three consecutive matches. An upcoming collection of matches against Omaha, Greenville, South Georgia, North Carolina and Charlotte will test the Hailstorm.
3	Union Omaha (9-5-7) Week 22: @ NCO	4 Last Week: 7	The Owls have been heating up at the best possible time, surging from 10th place to fourth place in just over a month. Omaha’s seven wins across its last nine matches is a new club record across that span.
4	Forward Madison FC (10-5-6) Week 22: v. CHA, v. KNX	1 Last Week: 3	The ‘Mingos have won the most points above expected (7.74) and have jumped up to second place following a pair of victories. On top of that, Madison is enjoying just its second-ever double-digit win season (2019) since its inception.
5	Greenville Triumph SC (9-6-5) Week 22: @ NC	Last Week: 5	Continuing its steady rise up the table following a slow start to its fifth campaign, Greenville have lost just one match in its last 11 contests. A pair of upcoming contests on the road against North Carolina and Northern Colorado could pose a challenge to the rising side.
6	Charlotte Independence (9-7-6) Week 22: v. TRM	2 Last Week: 4	After that hot start to 2023, the Jacks’ season has been largely up and down. Manageable upcoming matchups against South Georgia, Central Valley and Knoxville should see the Independence bounce back a bit.
7	South Georgia Tormenta FC (8-10-3) Week 22: v. CV, @ CLT	1 Last Week: 8	The defending champs have now matched Northern Colorado for most goals scored on the season but haven’t been as productive on the defensive end. Tormenta FC has conceded the third-most goals this season (33) which has stunted the Ibises’ success throughout its title-defending campaign.
8	Richmond Kickers (6-7-9) Week 22: v. NC, @ CHA	2 Last Week: 6	The Kickers are riding their longest unbeaten streak since their debut 2019 League One campaign after going 0-3-3 across their last six matches. Emiliano Terzaghi has quietly put together his record fourth-consecutive season with double-digit goals, but it looks like Richmond’s supporting cast will need to up their production in order to right the ship.
9	Lexington SC (5-10-6) Week 22: v. CV	1 Last Week: 10	Lexington certainly have all the pieces to be successful in its debut campaign but the question remains whether or not there’s enough time remaining in the season to put it all together. Recent victories over Omaha and Northern Colorado were unexpected yet wholly necessary to LSC’s late-season push for the playoffs.
10	One Knoxville SC (6-9-7) Week 22: @ MAD	1 Last Week: 9	Aside from earning a stoppage-time winner against Central Valley to close out July, Knoxville have lost five matches across its last six. A first-ever match at raucous Breese Stevens Field may prove too much for Knoxville to handle this weekend.
11	Chattanooga Red Wolves SC (4-12-5) Week 22: @ MAD, v. RIC	1 Last Week: 12	Following a promising win against Madison just over two months ago, the Red Wolves have gone a shocking 1-6-3 with a -11 goal differential. On track to concede the most goals in a single season in league history, Chattanooga needs more from its goalkeeping and defending.
12	Central Valley Fuego FC (5-13-2) Week 22: @ TRM, @ LEX	1 Last Week: 11	Fuego FC’s disappointing 2023 campaign has continued as Adam Smith’s side has struggled mightily in their second League One season. With goalkeeper Ofek Antman still out with a lingering injury, Fuego FC maintains the second-worst goal differential (-14) and has accumulated the fewest clean sheets on the season (1).