Sept. 18, 2005
ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- No. 11-ranked Navy lost in its first game of the day, 7-6, to No. 9-ranked Loyola Marymount, but responded with a solid effort to defeat No. 13-ranked UC-Davis in the nightcap, 8-5, during the second day of the SoCal Invite. The 2-2 performance over the weekend allowed the Midshipmen to place 11th in the tournament. The tournament featured 14 of the top 16 teams in the country. Navy improves to 8-4 on the season.
In the first game, a 7-6 loss to Loyola Marymount, Navy fell behind 3-1 at halftime and was forced to rally the rest of the game. The Mids cut the lead to 4-3 after three quarters, but couldn't complete the rally, as the Lions held on for the one-goal victory.
"It was a very competitive game, but we just couldn't get over the hump. We just ran out of time in the end," said Navy head coach Mike Schofield. "Their goalie played very well."
Todd Carlson (Modesto, Calif.) led Navy with two goals, while four others netted one goal each. George Naughton (Deerfield Beach, Fla.) recorded nine saves for Navy in goal.
In the second game of the day, Navy scored five unanswered goals in the second half to break open a tie game and breeze to an 8-5 triumph over No. 13-ranked UC-Davis. The win was Schofield's 450th career victory in only his 21st year at Navy.
Navy led 2-1 and 3-2 after one quarter and at halftime, respectively. UC-Davis tied the game early in the third quarter before the Mids scored the game's next five goals to put Davis away. The victory ended a four-game losing streak to UC-Davis.
"Our five-man (man-down) defense was the story of the game," said Schofield. "Tyler Hill (Houston, Texas) led that area and has really improved since the start of the year. Everyone that made the trip played in the Davis game."
Hill and Alex Ratcliffe (Coronado, Calif.) led the way with two goals each, while four others netted one goal each. Seniors accounted for seven of the 14 goals during the day. Naughton made seven stops in goal.
"Our seniors really stepped it up over the weekend and that is what we are looking for," said Schofield. "We're getting better every weekend and that is very encouraging."
Navy will return home for a Wednesday night league match against George Washington, beginning at 7:00 p.m., in Lejeune Hall.
# GO NAVY #
