4/12/2004 - Men's Lacrosse
Maryland Win Propels Navy to No. 2

NEW YORK ? Two days after surprising No. 1-ranked Maryland, the Navy lacrosse team was rewarded by collegiate lacrosse coaches with a No. 2 ranking in the April 12 edition of the STX/USILA Poll. It marks Navy's highest ranking dating back to 1973, the first set of documented polls.

Navy opened the season ranked No. 14 by Lacrosse Magazine, but was unranked in the initial STX/USILA poll on Feb. 26. Despite dropping a 12-9 decision to then ninth-ranked Ohio State at home, Navy entered the coaches poll at No. 15 the week of March 9. How did that happen? Navy's No. 15 ranking was due largely because of its 9-8 overtime victory in Chapel Hill over then fourth-ranked North Carolina.

The Midshipmen cracked the top 10 March 15 following an 11-5 win over Patriot League foe Bucknell. Following back-to-back wins over conference opponents Hobart (13-8) and Colgate (21-6), Navy moved up to eighth.

The following week, Navy claimed its seventh-straight victory over arch rival Army, beating the No. 9 Black Knights convincingly in West Point, 18-10. That win moved the Mids up two spots to sixth.

Navy hadn't won a road game against Georgetown in 12 years, but the Mids controlled the game from the start and upset the then-ranked No. 4 Hoyas, 7-5.

Last week, the Mids traveled to nearby College Park as the fourth-ranked team, its highest ranking since the 1989 campaign when the Mids were ranked No. 3 for four-consecutive weeks. Navy faced a tall task in playing not only an undefeated Maryland squad, but the No. 1-ranked team in the nation. The Mids entered the game 0-20 against top-ranked teams, but came away with the program's first win over a No. 1-ranked team.

This season, Navy has won four game against top-10 teams, including three against top-four squads. Undefeated on the road, all four of Navy's wins over top-10 programs this season have been away from Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. Six of the top-10 teams in the nation are Navy foes. The Mids are 4-1 against those teams with Johns Hopkins remaining on the schedule.

The Midshipmen will defend their No. 2 ranking Friday when they play host to Lehigh. Game time has been moved up to 4 p.m.

USILA Poll (April 12, 2004)
Team (Record) Points (first place votes)
1. Johns Hopkins (7-1) 195 (7)
2. Navy (8-1) 188 (2)
3. Maryland (8-1) 180 (1)
4. Syracuse (7-1) 177
5. North Carolina (6-3)
6. Princeton (5-2) 150
7. Georgetown (6-2) 143
8. Ohio State (8-2) 130
9. Army (8-2) 118
10. Brown (7-1) 107
11. Cornell (5-2) 87
12. Towson (5-3) 76
13. Duke (4-5) 75
14. Notre Dame (5-4) 69
15. Rutgers (6-3) 64
16. Denver (6-3) 44
17. Delaware (8-3) 35
18. Virginia (3-6) 33
19. Loyola (3-4) 16
20. Villanova (8-2) 14

Others Receiving Votes (in order): Dartmouth 13, Massachusetts 13, UMBC 12, Hobart 2, Albany 1, Bucknell 1, Harvard 1, Pennsylvania 1.

G-o N-a-v-y