ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The Navy men's soccer team grabbed its third-consecutive win on Sunday afternoon following a 1-0 victory over Colgate on Senior Day at the Glenn Warner Soccer Facility.
 
Jacob Williams (Fr., Millersville, Md.) scored off a penalty kick in the 17th minute of the match to pace the Midshipmen (4-11-1, 3-5-0 Patriot League) to the win over the Raiders (8-4-5, 4-2-2 PL). Prior to the match, the Navy men's soccer program honored its lone senior Michael Hurley (Sr., Arlington, Va.), who took part in his final match at the Glenn Warner Soccer Facility. 
 
Navy is tied for seventh overall in the Patriot League standings with Army. Both service academies currently have nine points, but the Black Knights hold the tiebreaker over the Midshipmen following a 4-1 victory over Navy earlier this month. The top six teams in the Patriot League regular-season standings earn a spot in the Patriot League Tournament and Bucknell -- Navy's next opponent -- is currently sixth overall in the standings with 10 points. The Midshipmen need a loss or tie from Army this evening to keep their postseason hopes alive.
 
"Our guys had a great performance today," head coach Tim O'Donohue said following the match. "After Jacob went down, the guys rallied and knew it was the next man up. I thought we played really well and did what we had to do. It is a young group that is starting to learn the importance of defending set pieces and clearances. We have a lot of young players with a lot of experience and we are seeing them mature. We beat a really good team in Colgate. They are an excellent team and really well coached."
 
Navy got out on the front foot in the early going with Williams' third goal of the week just 17 minutes into the contest. Following a long ball played into the box, Williams had a step on the Colgate defender, but the charging Raider goalkeeper tripped up Williams in the box to give the Midshipmen a penalty kick. Williams took the penalty kick and after Jacob Harris jumped to the right post, Williams rolled a shot to the open left side of the net and gave Navy a 1-0 lead.
 
Williams has scored eight goals this season and has scored in three-straight matches. The freshman has scored Navy's last four goals. Williams ranks second in the Patriot League with eight goals and third with 16 points. In Patriot League matches, Williams has seven goals and 14 points, both of which are tops in the league. 
 
The Midshipmen's defense limited Colgate with just two shots and none on goal in the first half. Navy compiled six shots in the half and four shots on goal.
 
The defense for Navy kept the Raiders at ease in the second half. Despite racking up 10 corner kicks in the final 45 minutes, Colgate was only able to put one shot on target throughout the contest. The Midshipmen's defense blocked seven shots in the second half and surrendered just two shots off the Raiders' 10 corner kicks.
 
Both teams traded high-quality scoring chances just before the 80th minute. Navy struck first in the 75th minute with Harris making a diving stop on a shot from Wyatt Millard (So., Columbia, S.C.) and then Nicko West's (So., Mansfield, Texas) rebound attempt hit the left goal post. In the 77th minute, Colgate tried to level the match, but Freddy Jonsson saw his shot ricochet off the crossbar.
 
In the 86th minute, the Raiders recorded their first shot on target, but Uyi Omorogbe's shot was scooped up by Tyler Fahning (Fr., Victoria, Minn.).
 
Over the last two matches, the Navy defense has only allowed just one shot on goal and posted back-to-back shutouts for the first time since October 2014 when the Midshipmen notched five-straight clean sheets.
 
Navy concludes its regular season on the road against Bucknell. The start time between the Midshipmen and Bison has been moved up to 1 p.m. on Saturday afternoon from Lewisburg, Pa. Bucknell is currently in the sixth and final transfer spot into the Patriot League Tournament with 10 points