ANNAPOLIS, Md. - The postseason picture for the Patriot League and the Navy women's soccer team continues to get clearer by the game. After clinching a top-six position for next month's tournament after defeating American on Wednesday, the Mids will be looking to sew up a top-two spot and potentially the outright regular season title with their matchup versus Boston University on Saturday morning. Currently atop the league standings with a 14-2-1 overall record and a 5-1-1 mark in Patriot League action, a win by the Mids over the Terriers (5-10-2, 2-4-1 PL) would clinch the regular season title, while a tie would guarantee the team a top-two position. The action between the two teams is set for 11 a.m. at the Glenn Warner Soccer Facility. Live stats will be provided for Saturday's contest.
2019 Patriot League Standings
(2 games remaining, 6 points)
1-Navy (5-1-1) 16 points || Saturday vs. Boston *Clinched top-six
2-Loyola (3-1-3) 12 points || Sat. vs. Colgate
3-Army (3-2-2) 11 points || Sat. vs. Lehigh
T4-Lehigh (3-3-1) 10 points || Sat. at Army
T4-Bucknell (3-3-1) 10 points || Sat. vs. American
T4-Holy Cross (2-1-4) 10 points || Sun. vs. Lafayette
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7-Lafayette (2-2-3) 9 points || Sun. at Holy Cross
8-Boston (2-4-1) 7 points || Sat. at Navy
9-Colgate (1-3-3) 6 points || Sat. at Loyola
10-American (0-4-3) 3 points || Sat. at Bucknell
Last Time Out
On the strength of an
Emily Keast goal late in the first half, Navy came away with 1-0 win on the road over American on Wednesday afternoon. The Mids bolstered their grip on the top of the Patriot League with a complete team effort that saw their offense outshoot the Eagles, 18-10 and their defense post shutout number 11 of 2019.
With the host team held at bay by Navy's defense, the Mids were able to drum up additional looks on the offensive end over the final 15 minutes of the half. With a new look and energy to their lineup due to various substitutions, Navy's reserves registered four shots before the half expired. The two shots that resonated the loudest on the scoreboard were a
Caitlin Doran shot on goal that deflected off Lang and Keast's powerful put-back on the loose ball to the back of the net at 41:28. Both Keast's goal and Doran's assist were the first of their respective 2019 seasons. Overall, 18 of Navy's 20 field players have now recorded points for the Mids this season.
At the half, Navy was outshooting American, 10-4 with a 5-1 advantage in shots on goal.
Coming out of the halftime intermission, the action was a little more even in the second half as the teams split 14 combined shots, eight in favor of Navy and six for American, though neither squad was able to find the back of the net and the game concluded with a 1-0 victory in favor of the Mids.
In her eighth clean sheet of 2019, Fortson finished with three saves. All-time, Fortson has recorded 25 shutouts, second-most in program history by a Navy keeper.
Navy vs. Boston
Saturday will be the 10th meeting between the two schools in a series that began with Boston joining the Patriot League for the 2013 season ... Since Sept. 20, 2013, the Terriers lead the series 7-2 and have outscored the Mids, 10-3 all-time ... After winning the first-ever matchup at home in 2013 by a 1-0 score, the Mids dropped six straight, including three postseason bouts before flipping the script in 2017 with a 1-0 victory in Annapolis ... Seven of the nine contests between the schools have had one-goal margins of victory, while the other two were by two goals (Nov. 7, 2014 & Oct. 29, 2016) ... Navy's two wins in this series have both come at home.
Last 5 Matchups
Dating back to 2015, the Mids are 1-4 and have been outscored by the Terriers, 6-2
Oct. 5, 2018 (A): Boston 1 - Navy 0
Oct. 2, 2017 (H): Navy 1 - Boston 0
Nov. 4, 2016 (N): Boston 2 - Navy 1 (Patriot League Semifinals)
Oct. 29, 2016 (A): Boston 2 - Navy 0
Oct. 31, 2015 (H): Boston 1 - Navy 0
2018 Recap
A matchup between two of the top teams in the Patriot League lived up to its billing on Friday, Oct. 5 as a 0-0 stalemate between Navy and Boston University covered the first 87:27 of action before the host Terriers found the back of the net with a Taylor Kofton goal with less than three minutes left in regulation. Coming into the game as the only undefeated team in the conference, the Mids put forth a strong defensive effort in the contest at Nickerson Field.
With the scoreboard still showing zeroes, the action flowed more freely from end-to-end down the stretch. After McKenna Doyle pushed a shot wide at 83:38,
Karli Sottung came back down to the opposite end 55 seconds later and tested Morgan Messner with a shot towards the crossbar. The Terriers' goalkeeper was forced to jump and deflect the shot over and out of play.
That all changed in the 88th minute when Doyle controlled the ball in the corner and fed Kofton at the top of the 18-yard box. After a few dribbles, Kofton square up the ball and lofted it into the far upper-90 corner of the goal to break the 0-0 tie.
For the game, Boston outshot Navy, 12-4 with a 5-3 advantage in shots on goal. The Terriers also tallied five corner kicks versus one for the Mids.
Comparing the Teams
(2019 Stats) |
Navy |
Boston |
Record |
14-2-1 / 5-1-1 PL |
5-10-2 / 2-4-1 PL |
Goals/Gm |
1.41 |
0.71 |
Assists/Gm |
1.41 |
0.53 |
Shots/Gm |
15.1 |
11.5 |
Goals Against Avg. |
0.40 |
1.24 |
GK Saves/Gm |
2.2 |
5.6 |
Individual Leaders
(2019 Stats) |
Navy |
Boston |
Goals |
Mang, 4 |
3 players, 2 |
Assists |
McClaskey, 5 |
Oldham, 2 |
Points |
McClaskey, 11 |
2 players, 5 |
Shots |
McClaskey, 40 |
Heilferty, 35 |
GK Saves |
Fortson, 30 |
Fay, 43 |
Parking / Shuttle / Ticket Information
Fans are reminded that the general public does not have access to drive their vehicles on to the U.S. Naval Academy. Due to the Navy-Tulane football game on Saturday afternoon, fans are asked to park at the former NSA Annapolis Commissary off of Kinkaid Road (across for the Navy Lodge at 347 Kinkaid Rd., Annapolis, 21402) and take a shuttle that will run every 10 minutes starting one hour prior to the game (10:00 AM) and will continue running until one hour after the game is completed (approx. 2:00 PM). Fans 18 and over need a government-issued photo ID. Dogs are not permitted inside the
Glenn Warner Soccer Facility.
Free Admission
All soccer contests at the Glenn Warner Soccer Facility will be free of charge.