For the third straight week, the William Smith College soccer team is ranked fifth in the National Soccer Coaches Association (NSCAA) poll. The Herons held onto the No. 5 spot after winning their first two Liberty League matches of the season over the weekend.

William Smith remains the top-ranked team in the East Region. The Herons are also ranked seventh in the nation in the weekly D3Soccer.com poll, up three spots from last week.

The Herons defeated Vassar 1-0 on Friday, thanks to a goal from junior BreLynn Nasypany in the 83rd minute. She connected on a cross from first-year Renee Jensen for her third tally of the year.

The following day, William Smith downed Rensselaer 2-0. First-year Whitney Frary paced the offense with a goal and an assist. She set up sophomore Kate Redmond for the game-winner in the 15th minute on a corner kick, and then added an insurance tally in the 89th minute.

Sophomore goalie Amanda Davis picked up five saves on the weekend for her fourth and fifth shutouts of the season. Davis was dubbed the Liberty League's Defensive Performer of the Week for her efforts. She tops the league in shutouts, shutouts per game (0.62), and ranks second in goals against average (0.49).

The Herons (6-2-0) will be back in action on Sept. 30, when they travel to seventh-ranked Ithaca for a non-league match at 4 p.m. Fans unable to make it to the game can listen live on WICB-FM (91.7 in Ithaca), or follow along online with live stats.