ANNAPOLIS, Md. - A rematch of the 2020-21 Patriot League Women's Soccer Championship between Navy and Colgate highlights the Mids' upcoming weekend of competition. Meeting for the third time this calendar year after a regular season matchup in February and a title game showdown in April, the Mids (5-5-1, 1-2 PL) and Raiders (6-4, 2-1 PL) are set to go head-to-head on Saturday afternoon in Hamilton, N.Y. at Colgate's Beyer-Small '76 Field with kickoff scheduled for 1 p.m. In that Patriot League Championship contest on April 17, the two rivals tied 1-1 in regulation before the Mids earned the title in penalty kicks by a 4-1 margin. Saturday's game concludes a tough opening run for Navy in league play as the Mids have competed in three straight games against teams that were in the 2020-21 Patriot League Tournament.

The Navy-Colgate game will have live stats provided online, as well as be streamed via the ESPN+ platform. ESPN+ is a subscription-based streaming service that requires patrons to sign-up for monthly or yearly plans prior to tuning into the contest.

Scouting the Competition
Colgate
The Raiders have showcased a well-rounded style of play over their first 10 games of the season winning five games via shutouts, while averaging 1.40 goals per game on offense, including three games with two or more goals ... Their defense smothers opponents as five times they've held teams to eight or less total shots with Boston U. and Bucknell getting credit for just seven and eight shots in Colgate's past two games ... The team has earned victories over Fordham (1-0), Eastern Michigan (1-0), Yale (2-0) and Binghamton (3-2) in non-conference action, in addition to Patriot League wins over Boston (Sept. 22, 1-0) and Bucknell (Sept. 25, 3-0) ... Colgate was third in the Patriot League's preseason poll after going 4-3-2 and reaching the Patriot League Championship Game in an abridged 2020-21 campaign ... The Raiders had four players selected to the Patriot League Preseason All-League Team: Fwd. Adrienne Vaughn, Mid. Hannah Pinkus, Def. Ruby Diodati and Def. Lyna Schaffer.

Navy vs. Colgate
Saturday will be the 41st meeting between the two schools in a series that began in Navy's second year of varsity existence in 1994 ... In that Oct. 16, 1994 matchup, Colgate took the contest by a 3-0 margin ... The Raiders would build up a 6-0 lead in the series over the first four years before extending the margin out to 9-1 following a postseason win over the Mids in 1999 ... Navy started leveling out the series in the second half of the 00's with five straight wins between 2006 and 2008, including two victories in tournament action ... Since 2013, Navy has posted a 7-2-2 record with wins in four of the last seven matchups ... Colgate is Navy's most common opponent in Patriot League Tournament play with 13 contests between the two; the Raiders lead that series, 7-5-1 ... All-time, Navy leads the series 18-16-6, though Colgate has outscored Navy, 50-44.

Last 5 Matchups
In the last five matchups dating back to 2017, the Mids are 2-2-1 with both losses coming in double overtime. Navy has outscored Colgate, 6-4 during this span.
    April 17, 2021 (A): Navy 1 - Colgate 1 (Patriot League Finals; Navy earns title 4-1 in penalty kicks)
    Feb. 28, 2021 (H): Colgate 2 - Navy 1, 2 OT
    Sept. 21, 2019 (A): Navy 1 - Colgate 0
    Oct. 20, 2018 (H): Colgate 1 - Navy 0, 2 OT
    Nov. 3, 2017 (H): Navy 3 - Colgate 0 (Patriot League Semifinals)

Most Recent Matchup: April 17, 2021 ~ Patriot League Championship Final
In a rematch of the first Patriot League game of the 2020-21 season, Navy and Colgate battled for over 110 minutes of regulation and overtime action and into penalty kicks to decide the 2020-21 Patriot League Women's Soccer Championship on Saturday, April 17. Knowing that this was potentially the last game of their careers, the Mids' senior trio of Kristina Dzhandzhapanyan, Molly Swiger and Emily Keast left it all out on the line and made sure that there would be one more game in 2021 and one more championship trophy coming back to Annapolis. Dzhandzhapanyan got the Mids on the scoreboard first with a goal in the 13th minute before Swiger and Keast starred in the penalty kick period. Swiger made saves on two of Colgate's first three penalty kicks before Keast sent home the winning kick in round four to set off a raucous celebration for the Mids in the center of Colgate's Beyer-Small '76 Field. The final score of Saturday's game was officially 1-1 with Navy collecting the title and the Patriot League's automatic bid into the NCAA Championship via penalty kicks, 4-1.
 
The Mids came out on a mission as the visitors tested the Raiders' goalie Sophia Boggs in the fourth minute when Victoria Tran tried to sneak curling shot around the near post, but Boggs secured the shot. Less than 10 minutes later, Navy's second shot on goal found the back of the net as Carolyn Mang played a deep through ball up the middle and found a sprinting Dzhandzhapanyan, who buzzed past Colgate's defenders, who were playing a high flat line. With 40 yards of turf between her and the goal, Dzhandzhapanyan dribbled unabated to the top of the 18 and chipped the on-coming Boggs into the empty net at 12:21.
 
Colgate's first high percentage scoring opportunity to tie the game came in the 32nd minute when Hannah Pinkus tracked down the bouncing ball and ripped a shot that sailed wide left of Navy's net. A little over four minutes later, the Raiders earned a pair of corner kick chances that were served dangerously into the six-yard box. In both cases, Navy cleared the ball away from the goal mouth. A third straight corner kick ended up as one too many for the Mids as the host Raiders converted it at 40:09 when Lauren Rougas leapt up and headed home Ruby Diodati's lofted corner.
 
Knotted on the scoreboard, the second half opened with 30 minutes of near even soccer as both teams registered four shots through the 80th minute. Aggressive end-to-end action highlighted the final six minutes of regulation as Mattie Gallagher came up large for the Mids as she navigate a cluttered box and handled Lyna Schaffer's header off a set piece. A little over a minute later, it was Navy's turn to challenge for the go-ahead goal as Kassidy Borden and Avery Fries each lined up shots towards the goal off of a loose ball following a corner kick. Borden's shot was blocked before Fries gathered the rebound and ripped a shot was handled by Boggs.
 
Tied 1-1 at the end of regulation, Colgate controlled the majority of action in the two overtime periods as they tallied seven of the combined eight shots over the 20 minutes of sudden victory competition. In the first 10-minute period, Colgate's Ally Giovino took both of the Raiders' shots; her first in the 95th minute required Gallagher to sprawl out and dive as Giovino's shot had eyes for the low left corner of the goal. In the second overtime period it was more tense moments for the Mids as the Raiders rattled off three shots in the first 4:50, punctuated by a wide open shot by Mia Ciardello that was blocked in the last moment by Sadie McCaleb. Gallagher made her second save in extra time when she snagged a header shot on goal by Adrienne Vaughn with just over two minutes left in the stanza. That stop clinched the 1-1 draw for Navy and it was onto penalty kicks.
 
In a theme that has played out throughout the unique 2020-21 season, the Mids' depth starred in penalty kicks. Freshman Kat Healey was the first player to step to penalty spot. Scoreless throughout her rookie season, Healey made sure she found the back of the net in penalty kicks as she placed her shot easily past Boggs into the left side of the goal mouth. With the count tied 1-1, fellow freshman Kassidy Borden, a defender with no shots on goal in 2020-21, came in and smashed home the Mids' second PK conversion. The next unsung hero to appear in penalty kicks was Swiger, who hadn't appeared in a game for Navy during the spring portion of the season. A trusted backup and veteran leader in the Mids' goalkeeper union, Swiger made her appearance count as she dove to the right and denied Sage DiGiulio's shot in round two. Up 2-1, Mang expanded Navy's lead to two with a soft changeup of a shot to the right corner. Swiger's confidence continued to shine as she made her second consecutive save in PKs as she leapt to her left and pushed away Lyna Schaffer's shot. Ahead 3-1 through three rounds, Keast calmly sank the championship-winning PK with a well-placed shot up the middle. That conversation by Keast set off a celebration that Navy fans could hear all the way back in Annapolis as the Mids were the 2020-21 Patriot League Women's Soccer Champions.
 
For the game, Colgate outshot Navy, 19-10 with a 6-4 advantage in shots on goal. The host Raiders also carried an 8-2 advantage in corner kicks as they constantly pressured the Mids throughout the 110-minute contest.

Comparing the Teams

2021 Stats	Navy	Colgate
Record	5-5-1, 1-2-0 PL	6-4-0, 2-1-0 PL
Goals/Gm	1.45	1.40
Assists/Gm	1.27	1.0
Shots/Gm	14.2	11.5
Goals Against Average	1.43	0.89
GK Saves/Gm	3.9	2.7

Individual Leaders

	Navy	Colgate
Goals	Doran, 5	Pinkus, 5
Assists	Dawson/McCaleb/Riddle, 3	Diodati, 4
Points	Doran, 10	Pinkus, 12
Shots	Riddle, 25	Pinkus, 25
GK Saves	Gallagher, 42	Poncsak, 14

Last Time Out: September 25 vs. Boston University
In a showdown of the two teams picked atop the 2021 Patriot League Women's Soccer Preseason Poll, the visiting Boston University Terriers topped the Navy Midshipmen by a score of 3-1 on Saturday, Sept. 25. The Terriers (5-5-1, 2-1 PL) took advantage of their chances in the first half to build a 2-0 lead before the Mids (5-5-1, 1-2 PL) were forced to try and comeback in the second half in front of their home fans at the Glenn Warner Soccer Facility. Jenna Daunt led Navy's effort in the second half as she found the back of the net less than three minutes into the second period.

With the score knotted at 0-0 and a little over 20 minutes left before halftime, the Terriers broke through with the game's first goal at 24:32 as the visitors built up the left wing and found an open Amy Thompson in the center of the goal box for the one-touch shot and score. Navy nearly tied it up four minutes later in a chaotic series of plays as Boston's keeper aggressively charged off her line, missed the ball only to see Caitlin Doran and Amanda Graziano's shots blocked by Terrier defenders in quick succession. Back in possession of the ball once again, Graziano took aim at the wide-open goal and ripped a shot only to have a Boston defender sweep away the shot on goal inside the six-yard box for the team save.
 
Dodging those dangerous shots by Daunt and Graziano, the visiting Terriers were able to extend their lead to 2-0 at 33:20 as Jenna Oldham curled a low shot around the Mids' wall off of a free kick from 25 yards out.

Coming out of halftime trailing by two goals, the Mids immediately clawed their way back into the game as Riddle sprinted up the left wing and charged towards the net before laying off a pass to Daunt, who didn't hesitate and lofted a shot to the back upper-90 of the goal at 47:11. Navy kept up its breakneck pace of charging to goal and looking to draw even as in the ensuing nine minutes of action the freshmen forward duo of Graziano and Alexa Riddle combined for three shots on goal, while another attempt from Riddle was blocked by a defender right after leaving her foot.

In the final moments of regulation, Abigail McNulty put away an insurance goal at 89:48.
 
For the game, Navy outshot Boston, 17-13, though both teams tallied seven shots on goal. The Mids also held an advantage in corner kicks, 6-3.