4/15/2004 - Men's Lacrosse
Second-Ranked Navy Closes Out Regular Season Patriot League Schedule

Files associated with this release:
2004 vs. Lehigh & Holy Cross notes

Game #10 * No. 2 Navy vs. Lehigh
Friday, April 16 * 4 p.m.
Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium
Annapolis, Md.
Radio: Live on WNAV (1430 AM)
Series History: Navy leads, 18-1 (last meeting: W, 7-4 on March 26, 2002)

Game #11 * No. 2 Navy vs. Holy Cross
Sunday, April 18 * 2 p.m.
Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium
Annapolis, Md.
Radio: Tape delayed on WNAV (1430 AM), will air at 4:30 p.m.
Series History: First meeting

Streak Stats: The Mids hold a 8-1 mark this season with a 5-0 record in the Patriot League ... the seven-game win streak is the longest for Navy since the 1986 season ... that year, Navy started with eight-straight wins before dropping its last-four games - losing at Maryland, to Virginia, against Johns Hopkins and a second game to Virginia in the first round of the NCAA Tournament ... the Mids have not won nine straight since the 1966 team finished the season 9-0.

Meade Milestone: Head coach Richie Meade is four victories away from the 100th-career win of his career ... Meade led the University of Baltimore to 27 wins and has picked up 69 victories at the helm of the Midshipmen.

Russell Review: Sophomore Matt Russell has been named the Patriot League Defensive Player of the Week the last-three Mondays after leading the Mids to back-to-back-to-back wins against top-10 teams ... Russell took over the starting role in goal at North Carolina on March 5 and has led Navy to seven-straight wins since the switch ... Russell limited the top-ranked Terps - who averaged 12.75 goals per game - to only six goals (and only two in the second half), while picking up 12 saves as Navy knocked off Maryland in College Park ... Russell recorded a career-high 14 saves at Georgetown and allowed only five goals in the contest ... at Army, he picked up 13 saves as the Mids clinched a Patriot League Tournament berth in the 18-10 win ... he is ranked No. 5 in the country with a 6.60 goals against average.

Rankings Report: The Mids keep climbing up the rankings ladder ... last week's 9-6 win at Maryland boosted the Mids to No. 2 in the STX/USILA, media and InsideLacrosse Power polls ... it is the highest ranking for Navy since 1975, when it ended the season at No. 2 ... the Mids compiled a 10-5 record that year and played Maryland in the NCAA Championship ... in the Mids' 21st attempt against a No. 1 team last Saturday, they knocked off Maryland by a convincing 9-6 margin, their first win over a top-ranked team ... Johns Hopkins regained the No. 1 ranking this week ... Navy is 4-0 against top-10 teams this season with wins over then-No. 4 North Carolina, 9-8 (ot), on March 5; then-No. 9 Army, 18-10, on March 27; then-No. 4 Georgetown, 7-5, on April 3; and then-No.1 Maryland, 9-6, on April 10 ... all four games have been played on the road.

Lehigh Ledger: Lehigh is 3-8 this season with a 1-3 mark in the Patriot League ... the Mountain Hawks are fifth in the league with an 8.55 goals-against average and are seventh in the conference in goals per game with a 7.55 average ... Navy has built up a commanding 18-1 all-time record over Lehigh since the two teams first played each other in 1910 ... the Mountain Hawks' only win, a 4-3 decision, came in 1913 ... the schools played each other 17 times between 1910 and 1933, but did not square off again until the 2001 season ... Navy defeated Lehigh, 13-4, on March 27, 2001, and then posted a 7-4 victory in the last meeting on March 26, 2002.

Crusaders Comments: Sunday's contest matches up Navy and Holy Cross for the first time ... the Crusaders are 3-6 with an 0-5 mark in the Patriot League, but will play Lafayette on Friday before visiting Annapolis ... Holy Cross is ranked fifth in the league with an 8.33 goals per game average, but rank at the bottom of the league standings in goals against with 12.07 goals allowed per game.

Navy vs. No. 1s: Navy won its first contest versus a top-ranked opponent at Maryland last Saturday ... the Mids headed into the game with an 0-20 record against No. 1-ranked teams since the national polls started in 1973 (complete polls were unavailable in 1996, ?97 and ?98).

Maryland-Navy Series Story: Maryland had won the last-11 meetings between the two schools and the last five by a combined six goals ... the Mids took a 9-6 victory over the Terps last week to snap the streak ... Navy had not beaten its intrastate rival since April 11, 1992, when the Mids posted an 11-3 win over the Terps in College Park.

The ABC's of Awards: Navy's decisive victory over Maryland last week was broadcast live on WMAR-TV, Baltimore's ABC affiliate ... at the end of the game, WMAR-TV tabbed three Navy players with special awards ... goalkeeper Matt Russell was named the Player of the Game after collecting 12 saves and limiting the Terps to only six goals ... one of Russell's saves was tagged the Bud Light Save of the Game by analyst and former Terps coach Dick Edell ... Russell used his hind quarters to make the stop after Maryland middie Ian Healy faked three times before making the shot ... Billy Looney was awarded the Under Armour ?Big Hit? after he launched Maryland's Andrew Schwartzman out of bounds ... Graham Gill made Jiffy Lube Play of the Game when Jon Birsner's shot ricocheted into Gill's stick and he converted the miss into the game winner.

Convincing Conquests: Navy has posted two wins this season by double-digit margins and another three victories by five or more goals ... the Mids are tied with Maryland as the nation's leader in scoring margin (5.56) ... Navy posted 21 goals against Colgate, the most by any NCAA Division I team this year ... five Mids scored at least two goals against Colgate, as sophomore Ian Dingman led the charge with five goals ... the Mids' 18-goal effort at Army is tied for the ninth-best performance this year.

Penalty Points: The Mids did not allow their opponents a man-up goal in the first-three games, but Bucknell finally converted an advantage and finished the day 2 for 2 on EMOs ... the Mids' opponents are 6 for 20 (.300) on the season ... the Mids have scored on nine of their 25 opportunities (.360).

Navy Notations: With eight wins this season, the Mids have already surpassed their total number of victories from last season ... Navy ended the 2003 campaign with a 6-7 record ... Navy won eight games in 2001 and ?02 ... Navy has not won nine games since 2000, when it finished with a 9-4 record ... Navy has not won 10 games since 1978 ... that year, the Mids finished the campaign with an 11-3 mark ... sophomore Ian Dingman leads Navy with 23 goals and 14 assists ... senior Joe Bossi is right behind him with 22 goals and four assists ... after posting his sixth multiple-assist game of the season at Maryland, sophomore Jon Birsner has contributed five goals and 18 assists on the season ... 18 different Midshipmen have scored at least one goal this season and 20 Mids have tacked on at least one assist ... junior Chris Pieczonka and Tommy Wallin are giving the Mids a tremendous edge in the draw circle ... Pieczonka has won 87 of his 136 (.640) face-off attempts this season, while Wallin had a stunning performance in D.C. on April 3, winning nine of his 10 attempts at Georgetown ... Wallin has taken 30 of his 44 (.682) attempts this year ... sophomore Matt Russell took over the starting role in goal at North Carolina and has picked up a 7-0 record in the net ... Russell continues to put on a show each week, as he picked up 12 saves and allowed only six goals in 60 minutes against then-No. 1 Maryland ... Russell has 73 saves on the year and has allowed 47 goals in his 427 minutes (6.60 GAA).

Tewaaraton Watch: Sophomore Ian Dingman, a preseason All-American, is on the list of 30 candidates in line to receive the fourth annual Tewaaraton Trophy ... the Tewaaraton Trophy is recognized as the pre-eminent lacrosse award honoring the top female and male varsity collegiate lacrosse players in the United States.

Patriot League Praise: With a 5-0 record in league play and an 8-1 mark overall, the Mids continue to rack up the weekly honors ... keeper Matt Russell has been named the Patriot League Defensive Player of the Week for three-straight weeks ... Russell has been a powerhouse in the net, as the Mids have won three-straight road games against top-10 opponents ... last week, the sophomore picked up 12 saves and limited then-No. 1 Maryland to six goals ... he was also honored after the Mids shut down Georgetown for a 7-5 win on April 3 ... Russell collected a career-high 14 saves and allowed only five goals ... Russell earned his first honor after the Mids' 18-10 drubbing of Army ... the win gave Navy sole possession of first place in the conference and clinched a Patriot League Tournament berth ... Jon Birsner was named the League's Offensive Player of the Week as well, as he scored a hat trick and added a trio of assists to help the Mids earn the N-Star ... Russell recorded 13 saves in the goal ... it was the second time in three weeks that the Mids picked up both offensive and defensive honors ... Joe Bossi earned Offensive Player of the Week on March 23 after tabbing four goals against Hobart, including the game winner ... Bossi also posted three-goal showing against Colgate that week... on March 16, attacker Ian Dingman and defender Mitch Hendler were named the Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively ... Dingman helped the Mids to an 11-5 victory over Bucknell with four goals and two assists, while Hendler held the nation's top scorer, Chris Cara, to only one goal.

Giving up Goals: The Navy defense has made it tough for opponents to score this year ... the Mids lead the Patriot League in scoring defense, allowing only 61 goals in nine games for a 6.78 average ... the Mids' scoring defense is ranked No. 5 in the nation ... on the offensive side, the Mids are ranked No. 3 in the country in scoring, tied with Notre Dame ... both squads own a 12.33 goals per game average.

DiNola Details: Junior Seth DiNola started in goal in all 13 games last season and the first two contests this year ... after the loss to Ohio State, the coaches made a switch at goal and DiNola committed to the field full-time ... he has traded in his goalie stick for a pole and short stick ... he has played in each of the last-four games at the wing position for face-offs, as well as in the defensive midfield.

Brothers in Arms: Last season, Navy had three pairs of brothers, but this season the Mids have a trio of Looneys ... Brendan Looney is a senior defensive midfielder, Steve Looney is a sophomore midfielder and Billy Looney is a freshman midfielder ... all three graduated locally from DeMatha Catholic in Hyattsville, Md. ... Dan Harris and Taylor Harris share the same last name, but are not related ... Dan hails from Manlius, N.Y., while Taylor is out of Clifton, Va.

Multiple Madness: Ian Dingman might wear the number one on his jersey, but when it comes to scoring, he prefers larger numbers ... Dingman tallied a career-high five goals at Lafayette and against Colgate, dropped in four goals against Bucknell, recorded a hat trick at Army and netted a pair of goals at North Carolina and at Maryland ... he has 13 multiple-goal games in his career (out of 22 games played) and 11 multiple-assist contests ... Joe Bossi seems to like the back of the net when he faces Patriot League opponents ... he scored four goals against Hobart and recorded three goals against Lafayette, Bucknell, Colgate and Army ... he has dropped in at least two goals against Navy's last-six opponents ... Jon Birsner recorded the eighth multi-assist game of his career with a pair of assists at Maryland ... he scored three goals at Army, only the second multi-goal game of his career (he started his career with a two-goal effort against Marist) ... Graham Gill added a two-assist effort against Bucknell, the fifth multi-assist game in his three years ... Gill tacked on a pair of goals at Georgetown, his seventh multi-goal game ... Chris Pieczonka had never scored a goal coming into the match-up with the Tar Heels, but netted two in the Mids' 9-8 overtime victory ... Ben Horn and Steve Looney each picked up a hat trick in Navy's 13-8 win over Hobart ... Looney added a pair of goals at Army for his second multi-goal affair ... Dwayne Osgood, Conor McKenzie and Ben Bailey all joined the multiple club after the Colgate contest ... Osgood and McKenzie netted four goals apiece, while Bailey chalked up two goals.

Face-Off Facts: The Mids take an early advantage over their opponents, having won 131 of the 204 face-offs this season ... Navy is atop the league standings with a .642 average and are ranked No. 4 in the nation ... Chris Pieczonka has won 87 of his 136 face-offs (.640), already giving him the seventh-best single-season total in school history ... Pieczonka is ranked sixth in the Navy record book with 140-career face-off wins ... the Mids have one of the best back-up players in Tommy Wallin ... on April 3, he battled the No. 1 face-off specialist in the country at Georgetown and came away with a 5-of-6 advantage over Andy Corno ... he won nine of his 10 attempts during the game and 30 of his 44 face-offs (.682) this season ... his 30 wins give him the 19th-best single-season total in school history and the 10th-best career total.

Postseason Promises: Navy became the first team to clinch a berth to the Patriot League Tournament after defeating Army last week ... Navy is 5-0 in the conference with only two league games remaining ... the eight teams in the Patriot League are playing a round-robin schedule during the regular season .... the top-four teams will play in the championship tournament scheduled for April 30 (semifinals) and May 2 (finals).

Premier Performances: Nine Navy players have scored their first career goal this season ... Dan Harris notched his first-ever goal just 1:31 into the contest at Georgetown ... Conor McKenzie netted his first goal against Colgate, and then added three more during the game for good measure ... Steve Looney picked up his first-career goal against Bucknell - and then recorded his first multi-goal game with a three-goal showing against Hobart ... Chris Pieczonka picked up his first goal at North Carolina on March 5, just six seconds into the fourth quarter, giving the Mids a 7-4 lead ... the face-off specialist added Navy's only other fourth-quarter goal to put the Mids ahead 8-7 with 8:12 to go in regulation ... senior Matt Midura netted his first-career goal against UNC ... his score gave the Mids a 4-2 lead in the second quarter ... Taylor Harris, who made only one appearance as a freshman, has seen action in both games this year and scored his first goal against Ohio State on Feb. 28, giving the Mids a 3-1 lead in the first quarter ... three Mids found the back of the net in the 14-1 victory over Lafayette on Feb. 21 ... Dwayne Osgood was sidelined with knee injuries his first two seasons but played in his first game against the Leopards and scored his first collegiate goal on an extra-man opportunity in the fourth quarter ... Billy Looney and Trevor Hoselton also notched their first career goals in the season opener.

Preseason Potpourri: Navy began the 2004 campaign with a No. 14 preseason ranking by Lacrosse Magazine ... three Mids were selected to Face-Off Magazine's Preseason All-America Honorable Mention squad: sophomore attack Ian Dingman, junior midfielder Graham Gill and team captain Thomas Morris (long stick) ... Dingman came off the bench in 11-of-13 games to lead the Mids in scoring with 40 points on 23 goals and 17 assists ... in his sophomore season, Dingman has scored 21 goals and 13 assists ... Gill started every game last season and produced 22 points on 13 goals and nine assists ... Gill has been active in both of Navy's wins over top-five opponents ... he netted three goals to help the Mids upend then-No. 4 North Carolina and scored twice as Navy downed then-No. 4 Georgetown ... Morris was named Navy's defensive MVP last year, despite missing two games because of a nearly severed finger.

Television Time: Navy fans will have the chance to see the Mids' final regular-season contest against Johns Hopkins (Apr. 24) on College Sports Television ... CSTV is available on Adelphia and Insight cable systems and is also available on DirecTV (ch. 610) ... CSTV also broadcast Navy's 18-10 win at Army.

Radio Review: Pete Medhurst will be back calling the action on WNAV-1430 AM for the both games this weekend ... the game against Lehigh will be broadcast live, while the Holy Cross game will be tape delayed until 4:30 p.m. ... Medhurst will also be on the air when the Mids take on Johns Hopkins (Apr. 24) ... Medhurst is a veteran of Navy broadcasts, as he co-hosts the Navy pre-game football show ... Medhurst has also picked up the call for Navy men's and women's basketball.

World Wide Web: For a complete report on Navy Athletics,
checkout www.NavySports.com ... the latest information from the Patriot League is available at www.PatriotLeague.com.

Service Selection Saga: The members of the Class of 2004 recently learned where they're headed after graduation!
Ben Bailey... Naval Flight Officer
Jared Bosanko... Surface Warfare Officer
Joe Bossi... Navy Pilot
Dan Eddy... Navy Pilot
Brendan Looney... Intelligence
Matt Midura... Navy Pilot
Thomas Morris... Navy Pilot
Adam Reel... Navy Pilot