CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The No. 14 Navy women's lacrosse team (16-5) put forth a valiant effort against No. 6 Virginia (13-6) on a rainy Sunday afternoon at Klöckner Stadium in Charlottesville, Va., but ultimately fell, 15-12, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
 
"Virginia got the best of us today," head coach Cindy Timchal said. "Our team hung strong the whole way. We had some momentum opportunities for us. We generated some good shots. We played and lost to a very good team. Navy women's lacrosse is exceptional, winning on Friday and coming out today and fighting the whole way. I am proud of the team. Proud of the seniors. Proud of the returning players who will be hungry for 2020. Tough loss for today down here in Charlottesville, but I couldn't ask for a better team than Navy women's lacrosse."
 
Offensively, Navy was led by a trio of players who notched hat tricks on the day. Kelly Larkin (Alexandria, Va.) led all Midshipmen with six points on three goals and three assists, while Nicole Victory (Issaquah, Wash.) scored three goals and added a helper. Andie O'Sullivan (Valley Cottage, N.Y.) rounded out the hat tricks, scoring three goals.
 
The Midshipmen benefitted from extra offensive possessions as the Mids won 19 out of 28 draws on the day. Annalise Heyward (Charlotte, N.C.) paced the team with nine draw controls, while Reagan Roelofs (Apple Valley, Minn.) added five draws, and Kayla Harris (Annapolis, Md.) picked up four.
 
Defensively, Navy caused five of Virginia's 13 turnovers on the day. Both teams had unforced turnovers due to the wet weather conditions. Heyward led the Mids with three caused turnovers on the day. Gab Harchelroad (Pittsburgh, Pa.) was the primary goalie for the Midshipmen on the day. She recorded three saves in just over 54 minutes of work. Abbi Young (Alamo, Calif.) spelled Harchelroad for a little under six minutes with two goals allowed and no saves.
 
Navy was the first team to get on the scoreboard as Larkin buried a pass from Victory in the back of the net to put the Midshipmen in front 1-0. Virginia responded with three straight goals to take the lead. O'Sullivan snapped the mini-run with a goal to pull Navy to within one, but UVA answered with back-to-back scores. O'Sullivan once again broke up the Cavalier's scoring with her second goal, but the home team used a pair of goals to push their advantage to 7-3. Heyward and Victory scored two of the final four goals of the half, but Navy trailed 9-5 at halftime.
 
In the second half, Virginia extended its advantage to six with back-to-back goals. Ellie Lecker (Ponte Vedra, Fla.) and O'Sullivan answered with goals to trim the margin back down to four, 11-7. After a pair of goals by the Cavaliers, the Midshipmen netted five of the next six goals to pull to within two. Larkin opened the run with an unassisted goal and Victory followed with a score of her own. Harris converted a pass from Larkin to cut the margin to 13-10. Following a goal by UVA, Larkin and Victory each scored their third goal of the afternoon to trim the lead to 14-12. Virginia was able to score a goal with just under two minutes to play to secure the victory, 15-12.
 
Navy finished the season 16-5 overall and 8-1 in the Patriot League. The Midshipmen advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the third consecutive season, earning their first at-large bid in program history.
 
As a team, the 2019 squad finished in the program's top three in points, points per game, goals, assists, assists per game, shots, shots on goal, draw controls, draws per game, caused turnovers, and games played.
 
Larkin, a junior, became Navy and the Patriot League's all-time leader in points, while also becoming the first player in school and conference history with three 100-point seasons. Marie Valenti (Bechtelsville, Pa.) became the first player in Navy history (sixth in the Patriot League) with 100 or more caused turnovers, while also becoming the Mids' all-time leader in ground balls.