Sept. 7, 2008
Box Score | Photo Gallery 
ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Navy sprint football defensive end Justin Nabozna (Sr./New Fairfield, Conn.) delivered 10 tackles with a sack to lead the Midshipmen to a 35-20 season-opening win over Catholic JV on Sunday afternoon at Rip Miller Field.
Nabozna, who also had 2.5 tackles for a loss and recovered a fumble, led a defensive effort that limited Catholic JV to a school-record minus-36 yards rushing on Sunday, besting the previous mark of minus-34 yards against Frostburg State JV last year. The Midshipmen defense totaled eight tackles for a loss, three sacks, three interceptions, five pass breakups and a forced fumble.
"The defense certainly did its part today," stated Navy head coach Maj. Jake Jenkins, USMC. "They were put into some bad situations today, but were able to come up with a stop in some of those."
Navy's offense racked up 549 yards - of which 256 yards came on the ground and 293 yards came through the air. Facing a defensive line much larger in size, Navy's front-five did not allow a sack in 37 passing attempts.
However, the Midshipmen threw five interceptions and fumbled the ball five times, two of which they lost. The seven turnovers tied a school record for the Mids, who also gave the ball away seven times against Army in 2005 and Penn in 2003, but still came away with a win in all of those contests.
"The offensive line kept us in the game," said Jenkins. "With the number of turnovers we had, we would not have had a chance if the line was getting pushed backwards. They did a solid job protecting and opening up holes against guys far bigger than them.
"Execution definitely needs improvement in all aspects. The effort was there throughout the game. We are going to fine tune it and get better."
Navy never trailed in the contest and jumped out to a 22-0 lead halfway through the second quarter. Alfonso Meidus (Sr./Leechburg, Pa.) opened the scoring with a two-yard touchdown plunge before D.J. Green (Sr./Indianapolis, Ind.) fired touchdown strikes to Karl Motoyama (Sr./Honolulu, Hawai'i) and Tommy Tellson (Sr./Bedford, Texas). An errant snap on a Catholic JV punt in its own endzone resulted in a safety for the Mids with 7:06 left in the half.
Catholic JV responded with two touchdowns on drives starting in Navy territory - both by interception - before the end of the half to make the score 22-14.
The Midshipmen took the ball to start the second half and marched 70 yards on just two plays, capped by a Meidus 20-yard touchdown scamper to push the lead to 14 points at 28-14. After the Cardinals again pulled with one score, this time at 28-20, Navy reeled off a nine-play, 91-yard drive that resulted in a 25-yard touchdown run for Stephen Benson (Jr./Ellenwood, Ga.) in the fourth quarter.
Joining Nabozna in the defensive effort on Sunday was Chris Combellick (Sr./Carmel, Ind.), who made six tackles with one in the backfield. Brian Smith (Sr./Gainesville, Fla.) and Luke Pye (So./Kannapolis, N.C.) both recorded a sack, with Pye's forcing a fumble that was recovered by Nabozna. James Campbell (Sr./Kansas City, Mo.), Tom Hayes (Jr./Ballston Lake, N.Y.) and Mike Nolan (So./Carmichael, Calif.) each intercepted a pass and totaled 55 yards in returns.
Nate Stewart (Jr./Fitzgerald, Ga.) ran 14 times for 85 yards, while Benson chalked up 69 yards on just eight carries. Jordan Foley (Fr./Butler, Pa.), Green and Meidus rushed for 29, 28 and 26 yards, respectively.
Green completed 23-of-35 passes for a career-high 281 yards with two touchdowns. Green completed a pass to 10 different receivers, as 12 Midshipmen recorded a catch on the day. JoJo Catrini (So./Norcross, Ga.) hauled in six balls for 73 yards, while Macedonius Melonas (Sr./Orem, Utah) made five catches for 75 yards and Tellson grabbed four passes for 44 yards with a score.
The Midshipmen (1-0) will return to action next Sunday when they head down to Ashland, Va., to take on Randolph-Macon JV. Kickoff is slated for 3:30 p.m.
