ANNAPOLIS, Md. - The Navy women's soccer team will hit the road this holiday weekend for a pair of contests. First up for the Mids (11-1-1, 3-0-1 PL) will be a Saturday afternoon tilt in Worcester, Mass. against the Holy Cross Crusaders (2-2-7, 0-0-4 PL) at 2 p.m. at the Linda Johnson Smith Soccer Stadium. After returning from their brief trip to New England the Mids will then turn their attention to a non-conference matchup in Dover, Del. against the Delaware State Hornets (0-14-0) on Monday at 4 p.m. at Alumni Stadium. Navy comes into this set of games as winners of 10 of its last 11 contests (10-0-1), while Holy Cross counters with an unbeaten streak of nine straight games (2-0-7). Saturday's action will have live stats, as well as a video broadcast as part of the Patriot League Network.
Last Time Out
Navy continued playing its strong brand of well-rounded team soccer on Saturday night as the Mids knocked off the Lehigh Mountain Hawks by a score of 1-0 in a Patriot League showdown at the Glenn Warner Soccer Facility. Scoreless through 79 minutes of play, the Mids' constant pressure finally resulted in a goal when
Kristina Dzhandzhapanyan banged home a deflected
Jeana Freeman shot on goal at 79:33. Navy's defense was equally as impressive on Saturday night as it held Lehigh to just six shots and two on goal.
Hampered by strong winds throughout the contest, the 0-0 stalemate continued late into the game before a quick series of shots on goal resulted in the game's first and only score. After Freeman's initial shot on goal was stopped by Lehigh's goalie Miranda Royds, Dzhandzhapanyan found the deflected ball at her feet for the easy tap-in from inside the six-yard box.
For the game, Navy outshot Lehigh, 15-6, while holding a 7-2 mark in shots on goal. The host Midshipmen also recorded more corner kicks, 6-4.
The shutout was the eighth in 13 games for Navy this season. Individually,
Sydney Fortson has backstopped six of those shutouts to give her 23 clean sheets in her decorated career.
Navy vs. Holy Cross
In a series that dates back to 1994 in Navy's first full season of NCAA Division I play and first year as a member of the Patriot League, the Mids are 20-2-3 all-time against the Crusaders ... A pair of consecutive ties in 2015 and 2016 broke up a streak of 14 straight wins by Navy dating back to 2001 ... Since that season, the Mids are 16-0-2 over the Crusaders ... Navy is 8-2-2 all-time versus Holy Cross in games played in Worcester.
Last 5 Matchups
In the last five matchups going back to 2014, the Mids are 3-0-2 and have outscored the Crusaders, 7-3
Sept. 13, 2018 (H): Navy 1 - Holy Cross 0
Sept. 15, 2017 (A): Navy 2 - Holy Cross 1
Oct. 2, 2016 (H): Navy 2 - Holy Cross 2
Oct. 4, 2015 (A) : Navy 0 - Holy Cross 0
Oct. 17, 2014 (H) : Navy 2 - Holy Cross 0
2018 Recap
Navy began the Patriot League portion of its 2018 schedule on Thursday, Sept. 13 with a 1-0 victory over Holy Cross. Taking on the Crusaders in a game that was moved up from Saturday, Sept. 15 in advance of any weather that may trouble the Mid-Atlantic region, the Mids used timely defending and a game-winning goal by
Baseley McClaskey in the 61st
minute to secure the shutout decision at the Glenn Warner Soccer Facility.
The game went into halftime scoreless with both teams credited with seven shots.
Holy Cross put the pressure on first to start the second period as the visiting Crusaders registered the four shots and a corner kick over the opening 14 minutes of action. Navy's goalkeeper
Sydney Fortson made her second save of the game during this run of play as she turned aside a Carly Flahive shot on goal in the 59th
minute. After some miscommunication with her backline, Fortson retreated from the top of the box and made the stop on Flahive's looping shot near the goal line.
Withstanding that initial surge by Holy Cross, Navy made its first shot on goal of the second half count when McClaskey got a hold of free kick from over 40 yards out at 60:25. With the ball powered towards goal, the Crusaders' goalkeeper Sophia Lettieri parked underneath it, but saw it squirm late through her hands for the score.
For the game, Navy outshot Holy Cross, 14-13 with a 6-2 advantage in shots on goal. Both teams took three corner kicks.
Navy vs. Delaware State
The Mids and Hornets will meet for the sixth time in a series that began in 2008 ... Since the first matchup on Oct. 6, 2008, Navy has gone 5-0 versus Delaware State and out-scored its opponent by an 18-1 margin ... Following the opening game of the series (W, 5-0), the Mids earned a 2-0 victory in Dover on Sept. 27, 2009 and a 6-0 win on Oct. 3, 2010 ... The teams picked up their series over the past two seasons with the Mids winning 2-0 on the road in 2017 and 3-1 at home on Oct. 8, 2018.
2018 Recap
Navy dominated Delaware State from the majority of the 90 minutes in the contest on Oct. 8 at the Glenn Warner Soccer Facility. Outshooting the Hornets by a 30-8 margin, the Mids posted a 3-1 victory. With the score 3-0 through 87 minutes, Delaware State spoiled Navy's shutout prospect with a late goal in the 88th minute.
Kristina Dzhandzhapanyan,
Regan McQuain and
Hannah Miller all found their way into the box score with their first respective goals of 2018.
22 Midshipmen saw the field in this matchup. In goal,
Sydney Fortson and
Molly Swiger split time. Fortson earned the victory with 67:40 minutes of scoreless action.
Comparing the Teams
| (2019 Stats) |
Navy |
Holy Cross |
Delaware State |
| Record |
11-1-1 / 3-0-1 PL |
2-2-7 / 0-0-4 PL |
0-14-0 |
| Goals/Gm |
1.62 |
0.82 |
0.43 |
| Assists/Gm |
1.62 |
0.73 |
0.21 |
| Shots/Gm |
14.8 |
13.3 |
3.7 |
| Goals Against Avg. |
0.45 |
0.84 |
3.69 |
| GK Saves/Gm |
2.3 |
4.5 |
6.2 |
Individual Leaders
| (2019 Stats) |
Navy |
Holy Cross |
Delaware State |
| Goals |
Mang/McClaskey, 3 |
Brown/Ferrara, 2 |
O'Conner, 2 |
| Assists |
McClaskey, 4 |
Crowley, 3 |
O'Conner, 2 |
| Points |
McClaskey, 10 |
Crowley, 5 |
O'Conner, 6 |
| Shots |
McClaskey, 32 |
Flahive, 25 |
Ay, 9 |
| GK Saves |
Fortson, 23 |
Lettieri, 47 |
McCray, 48 |
