ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The No. 15 Navy women's lacrosse team (1-1) returns to Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium on Sunday afternoon at 12:00 p.m. as the Midshipmen welcome No. 21 Duke (2-1) to Annapolis for a nonconference game. The game will be streamed live on the Patriot League Network and live stats will be available.
 
Pink Game
Sunday's game between Navy and Duke is slated to be women's lacrosse's Pink Game. Fans are encouraged to wear pink in honor of anyone who is currently or have ever battled breast cancer. In addition, pink ribbon tote bags will be available at the marketing table on the concourse for the first 100 fans. While you're there, fill out an "I Stand For" poster with the name of a breast cancer survivor, current fighter, or victim and be ready to hold it up during a special recognition for those fighting against breast cancer.
 
All-Time Series
The game between Navy and Duke will mark the sixth meeting between the two teams. The Blue Devils are 5-0 all-time against the Midshipmen, including a victory in the second round of the NCAA Tournament (2013).
 
The game marks the third time the two teams will play in Annapolis, evening the home-and-home slate at three games apiece. It is the first time the two teams will play in Annapolis since 2016.
 
The last time the two teams met was in 2017. Navy, who would eventually advance to the Final Four that season, dropped a 20-12 decision to Duke in Durham.
 
Annalise Heyward (Charlotte) is the only Midshipmen on the roster to call North Carolina home. Conversely, Duke has seven players on the roster from Maryland.
 
Scouting the Midshipmen
After a pair of games, Navy has tallied 48 points on 32 goals and 16 assists. Eight different players have registered points in the first two contests, including eight different players who have netted goals. Kelly Larkin (Alexandria, Va.) and Nicole Victory (Issaquah, Wash.) pace the offense with 11 and 10 points, respectively. The duo lead the team with six assists apiece, while Annalise Heyward (Charlotte, N.C.) and Natalie Irwin (Annandale, Va.) lead the scoring with six goals each. Larkin and Kayla Harris (Annapolis, Md.) each have five goals apiece, while Victory has netted four scores.
 
Reagan Roelofs (Apple Valley, Minn.) continues to gain possessions for the Midshipmen with a team-high 16 draw controls won in two games. She is just ahead of Harris who has 14 draws thus far.
 
Defensively, Gil Eby (Towson, Md.), the reigning Patriot League Defender of the Week, anchors the Navy backline. Eby has a team-high four caused turnovers with a team-best five ground balls. Heyward has three caused turnovers in the early goings, while Harris is second on the team with four ground balls. Abbi Young (Alamo, Calif.) has seen the majority of the time between the pipes for Navy at goal. The sophomore has 20 saves so far this season, while adding three ground balls.
 
After being edged 14-13 in overtime by No. 8 Virginia, Navy returned to its winning ways with a 19-12 victory over Saint Joseph's on Wednesday. The Mids received career performances by Heyward (four goals), Larkin (10 points), and Young (12 saves) against the Hawks. Seven different players scored in the game, including Larkin (5g), Heyward (4g), and Harris (3g) who all registered hat tricks.
 
Twenty-seven (27) different Midshipmen saw action in the game, including 12 players making their first appearance of the season. It was the first collegiate appearance for freshmen Maggie Aumiller (Crownsville, Md.) and Gabby Lavin (Gambrills, Md.).
 
Scouting the Opponent
Duke enters the game with a 2-1 overall record. The Blue Devils have a potent offensive attack, netting 62 total goals in the first three game of the season. Duke has scored at least 20 goal in each game this year, marking the first time in their history with three consecutive 20-goal games.
 
In their last game, the Blue Devils' Catriona Barry and Veronica Hineman each scored four goals to lead the No. 21 Duke women's lacrosse team past Wofford, 20-5, on Thursday evening at Koskinen Stadium.
 
The Blue Devils' head coach Kerstin Kimel (Maryland '93) played for current Navy head coach Cindy Timchal at the University of Maryland. During her career, she led the Terrapins to four consecutive national semifinal appearances and the 1992 NCAA National Championship. The Havertown, Pa., native was a two-time All-America selection and the 1993 NCAA National Defensive Player of the Year.
 
Tewaaraton Award Watch List
The initial Tewaaraton Award Watch List was announced on Thursday, Feb. 13 and Kelly Larkin was named to the list. The lists include the top players across all three divisions of NCAA lacrosse and highlight the early contenders for the Tewaaraton Award. 2020 marks the 20th anniversary of the Award.
 
This is the third consecutive season that Larkin has been named to the Tewaaraton Award Watch List (2018, '19, '20). Last season, Larkin advanced past the initial cut to become a Tewaaraton Award Nominee (Top 25).
 
One of the most decorated women's lacrosse players in Navy history, Larkin is an All-American (2017, '18, '19), All-Region ('18, '19), and All-Conference performer (2017, '18, '19). She holds the Navy and Patriot League career record for points, while also holding the Midshipmen career mark for assists. Larkin ranks fifth in Navy history with 190 career goals, while also ranking in the school's top five in points per game, goals per game, assists per game, shots attempted, and shots on goal.
 
National Rankings
The Navy women's lacrosse team is currently ranked in all three national polls this week. The Mids finished the 2019 season ranked in all three national polls, and have been ranked nationally for 33 consecutive weeks, dating back to the final poll of 2017. The Mids are No. 15 according to the IWLCA, while coming in at No. 13 and No. 17 per Inside Lacrosse and  US Lacrosse Magazine, respectively.
 
Duke enters the game ranked No. 21 according to the IWLCA and No. 18 per Inside Lacrosse. The Blue Devils are receiving votes in the US Lacrosse poll.
 
Last Time vs. Duke (Feb. 12, 2017)
Despite a career-best five goals from Navy women's lacrosse junior Jenna Collins (Clarksville, Md.), Navy fell to tenth-ranked Duke, 20-12, on Sunday at Koskinen Stadium in Durham, North Carolina. The Mids return home to face Villanova on February 22 at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.
 
Navy and Duke traded two goals each in the first 5:21 before the Blue Devils rattled four consecutive to build a four-goal lead, 6-2, with 16:56 left in the first. Duke's offense was extremely efficient early on, tallying all six of its goals on six shots.
 
Collins and senior co-captain Morgan Young (Baltimore, Md.) each scored their second goals of the contest in a 3:21 span to cut the deficit to three, 7-4, with 13:35 remaining in the half. Blue Devil draw specialist Olivia Jenner recorded back-to-back goals during Duke's run of thee-straight tallies to extend the lead to six, 10-3, as 4:10 ran off the clock. Collins, with her third free-position goal, and sophomore Meg O'Donnell (Forest Hill, Md.) tallying her first off a Navy free-position attempt brought the Mids back within four, 10-6, with 5:44 left in the first half.
 
Navy and Duke began the second half much like they did in the first, trading three goals each in the first nine minutes to bring the score to 14-9. The Blue Devils, again, created another large scoring run, going on a 6-1 run over a span of 17:34 to build their largest lead of 10, 20-10, with 3:08 remaining. Duke tallied four of its game-high eight draw controls and was led by Kyra Harney's two goals during the run to put the game away.
 
Even though the Mids were on the wrong side of a lopsided score, there were some positives that came out of the contest. Navy won the draw control battle, 19-15, a battle that lost 23-6 last season as Jenner came up with 13. The Mids also generated six goals on eight free-position attempts, improving from last season's contest where Navy did not record one free-position attempt against Duke.
 
Collins's five goals extended her point streak to 13 games and gave her 11 career hat tricks. The junior midfielder's four free-position goals tied Navy's single-game program record, which was previously set by Kathy Young on Feb. 19, 2010.
 
Navy's underclassmen combined for six points on five goals and one assist against Duke. Freshmen Annalise Heyward (2g) and Kelly Larkin (1g, 1a) each tallied two points, while O'Donnell scored twice.
 
Last Time Out
The No. 15 Navy women's lacrosse team used career nights by several key players to post a 19-12 victory over Saint Joseph's on Wednesday evening at Sweeney Field in Philadelphia.
 
Senior attacker Kelly Larkin (Alexandria, Va.) matched a career high with 10 points, falling just one goal and one assist shy in career bests in each category. Her five helpers gave the senior 167 for her career, tying her with Jasmine DePompeo (2010-13) for the Navy all-time record in assists.
 
Larkin was joined offensively by fellow senior Annalise Heyward (Charlotte, N.C.) who also notched a career best with four goals scored on the night, while adding an assist for five total points.
 
Sophomore Abbi Young (Alamo, Calif.), who made her second career start at goal, finished with a career best 12 saves on the day. She allowed nine goals in just over 56 minutes of play to earn her first victory of the season and the second of her Navy career. Young had seven saves in the first half, while adding in five stops in the second.
 
Eight players finished the game with points scored. Aside from Larkin and Heyward, Nicole Victory (Issaquah, Wash.) added two goals and two assists for four points. Kayla Harris (Annapolis, Md.) added a hat trick with three scores, while Reagan Roelofs (Apple Valley, Minn.) notched a pair of goals and an assist for three points. Roelofs led the team with 12 draw controls on the night, while Harris added five and Heyward closed out the game with three.
 
Defensively, the Midshipmen forced seven of the Hawks' 11 turnovers in the game. Senior captain Natalie Irwin (Annandale, Va.) joined Heyward with the team lead with two caused turnovers apiece. Harris, Roelofs, and Moriah Snyder (Bel Air, Md.) added CTs in the game. Freshman Athena Corroon (Greenwich, Conn.) led the team with three ground balls in just her second collegiate game. In addition, the defense helped facilitate the offense, converting 17 of 20 clear attempts on the night.
 
Upcoming Promotions
Saturday, Feb. 22 | Navy vs. Villanova
Meet the Mids – Postgame autographs with team and t-shirt giveaway
– Presented by Annapolis Area Chick-fil-A and Papa Johns
Heart Health Month – Be active and complete workout circuit at the stadium and learn about how to stay healthy