Aug. 28, 2006
ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- Navy freshman forward Andrew Garcia was named the Patriot League Rookie of the Week in men's soccer after leading Navy to a 3-1 victory over Saint Joseph's on Sunday. The weekly award came during the first weekend of play and Garcia becomes the first Mid since teammate Eric Gorden won the award in October 2004 to garner Rookie of the Week accolades.
Garcia, who hails from Garland, Texas, helped Navy to its first victory of the season on Sunday. Garcia came off the bench to score his first career goal in the 34th minute against the Hawks, which would turn into the eventual game-winning tally. Garcia would finish off a perfect feed from McKenzie Plank (Mountain View, Calif.) in the right corner to give the Mids a 2-0 lead against the Hawks. Garcia paced Navy with three shots on the day.
"He will see a lot of playing time this year and will be around the ball a lot," said assistant coach Patrick Kennedy. "He has a knack for the goal and has a lot of creativity in the box. He should get stronger with more experience and will be counted on offensively this year."
The Patriot League also released its updated statistics and the Mids are well represented on the lists. As a team, Navy ranks fourth in goals scored per game (1.50), first in assists per game (1.50), second in points per game (4.50), third in saves per game (5.00). Navy is, however, eighth in goals allowed per game (2.00).
Individually, Plank ranks ninth in goals and points per game (1.50), while Eric Gorden (Longwood, Fla.), Carter Stapleton (Summerfield, N.C.), Travis King (Loveland, Ohio) and Garcia are all ranked in either goals per game or assists per game. Lastly, Thomas Jenkins (Franklin, N.C.) is second in saves per game (5.00) and sixth in save percentage (.714).
Navy will host the Anders Soccer Classic next weekend, battling Massachusetts on Friday night, beginning at 7:00 pm, before hosting Gonzaga at noon on Sunday. On both days, fans entering the Glenn Warner Soccer Facility will receive a free Navy men's soccer poster, while on Sunday, fans showing their Navy football ticket stub from the previous day's game with East Carolina will receive free admission to the game.
# GO NAVY #
