Navy Gets Healthy, Beats Lafayette
from press release
ANNAPOLIS, Md. — The Navy men's lacrosse
team (2-4, 1-2 Patriot League) jumped out to an 8-0 lead early in
the second quarter and never looked back as the Mids dealt Patriot
League foe Lafayette (2-3, 0-1 Patriot League) a 15-6 loss Saturday
afternoon at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.
It was a pleasant return home for the Midshipmen, who, after
opening their season on Feb. 12 at home, had played four-straight
games on the road. Along the way, heartbreak had set in as Navy
dropped a pair of one-goal decisions to nationally-ranked Loyola
and Bucknell, while top-10 ranked North Carolina ousted the Mids by
two.
That heartbreak, however, was erased Saturday when Navy put
together its most complete game to date, playing to near perfection
at every phase of the game. One of the most troubling stats
of the season for the Mids has been their lack of success at the
faceoff “x” which snowballed into various other
deficiencies. And while Navy’s faceoff corps would once again
face a formidable foe in all-league performer Cesar Munoz, Navy
junior Logan West (Berlin, Md.) was perhaps the biggest difference
maker in the Mids’ win over the Leopards.
West, who began to turn his game around in the fourth quarter of
last Monday’s Bucknell contest, dominated the “x”
on Saturday, winning 16 of the 23 draws he took and in turn, put
the ball in the offensive players’ hands.
“I think confidence is what I had been missing,” said
West, who came into the game having won just 43.7 percent of his
draws. “In the opener I played pretty
well, but then it started to go downhill for me in the second half
of the Loyola game and I found myself in a slump.
I couldn’t seem to get into any rhythm.
“I think our wing play today was probably the best I’ve
seen it all year. I couldn’t have
done it without them.”
There is certainly a correlation that can be made between faceoff
possession and Navy goals. The Mids won six draws in the
opening quarter and scored seven goals, while in the third quarter
Navy claimed seven faceoffs and in turn stuck five goals.
Navy opened the game on an 8-0 run, featuring a 7-0 advantage after
the first quarter of play. Junior Nikk Davis (Cockeysville,
Md.), who scored a pair of goals in the final 18 seconds of play to
force overtime at Bucknell, punched in the game’s first goal
less than two minutes into the contest. The flood gates
opened from there and continued into the second quarter where
sophomore middie Jay Mann (Cockeysville, Md.) scored 52 seconds
into the second frame with a 10-yarder from the right wing to cap
the 8-0 run.
Lafayette finally got on the scoreboard with 11:42 to go in the
second quarter when all-league attackman Tom Perini capitalized on
an extra-man opportunity, sending a hard-driven shot past Navy
keeper RJ Wickham (Penn Yan, N.Y.) from 10 yards out. Just 36
seconds later, Navy defenseman Peter Rogers (San Diego, Calif.) got
caught up in the netting and Lafayette midfielder Will Heffernan
capitalized by curling around and sticking his shot.
After nearly 10 minutes without a goal, Navy senior middie Andy
Warner send his 12-yard shot top shelf to give the Mids a 9-2
advantage with 5:03 to go in the opening half.
The Leopards put together a run to close out the half with
Heffernan scoring his second of the day, beating Navy defenseman
Michael Hirsch (Schwenksville, Pa.) on the crease, followed by an
unassisted goal by Doug Prusoff who bullied his way past defensive
middie Jordan Seivold (Minnetonka, Minn.) and somehow threaded his
shot past Wickham.
Senior midfielder Franklin Floyd trimmed the Mids’ lead to
four at 9-5 just minutes into the third period when he cleared the
ball and waltzed into the box untouched.
The Mids would gain control, however, scoring back-to-back goals
just 22 seconds apart, including a strike by senior pole Tom
Mansfield (Port Washington, N.Y.), who, racing down the field in
transition, scored his first-collegiate goal.
A roll dodge by Prusoff midway through the third period resulted in
a Lafayette goal, but Navy’s defense would keep the Leopards
off the scoreboard for the final 22 minutes of the game to preserve
the win.
Navy, meanwhile, scored three more in the third and once in the
fourth to produce the most goals in a game since defeating VMI last
year, 16-5. Freshman attackman Tucker Hull (Charlotte, N.C.)
scored a pair of goals in the third quarter, including a man down
goal with 5:32 to go. Lafayette’s Perini took a shot
following a Navy penalty which took out the legs of one of his own
players. Following a stoppage of play, the ball was awarded
to Navy. A heads-up play, team captain Marty Gallagher
(Wayne, Pa.) sent a long pass to Taylor Reynolds (Babylon, N.Y.)
who fed Hull on the doorstep.
It was the Mids’ first man-down goal since Joe Lennon pumped
one in at Army on April 12, 2008.
Seven different players scored for Navy, including three - Hull,
Warner and freshman Sam Jones (Annapolis, Md.) - who recorded hat
tricks. All three players have produced a point in each of
the six games this season, while Warner owns one of the
nation’s longest point scoring streaks. Ranked 20th, he
has turned in either a goal or assist in 18-consecutive games
dating back to last year’s Lehigh contest (March 2,
2010).
Jones, who has scored a goal in every game this season, paced the
Mids with a career-high six points (3G, 3A). He continues to
move his way closer to Navy’s top-10 freshman points, goals
and assists list. He has amassed 25 points on 16 goals and
nine assists.
Hull, meanwhile, moved into a tie for eighth on Navy’s
all-time freshman assists list, turning in his 10th helper of the
year. He is tied with John Hawley (1985) and Jim Shulson
(1975) and is three shy of tying seventh-place Mike Chanenchuk.
Defensively, it was Navy’s best effort to date, holding the
Leopards to six goals. It’s the fewest goals the Mids
have given up since defeating Holy Cross,
12-3, on March 20, 2010.
“I think this week we focus on communication, getting fills
and sliding at the right time,” said Hirsch, a three-year
starter for the Mids. “We were leaving RJ hung out to
dry and we just couldn’t continue to let that happen.
Our team has been putting up goals and I think we are of the
mindset that if we can hold our opponent to under 10 goals, we will
win.”
The Midshipmen have a quick turnaround playing host to Towson
Tuesday evening at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.
Faceoff is set for 7:00 pm with 1430 WNAV providing wall-to-wall
coverage with Pete Medhurst on the call.
