Seven home games, as well as the return of the Johns Hopkins series, highlight the 2022 Navy men's lacrosse schedule released Thursday by third-year head coach Joe Amplo. The Midshipmen will play a 14-game regular-season slate for the first time in the program's 115-year history and features three games against 2021 NCAA Tournament qualifiers.

The Mids will play three scrimmages before officially kicking off the season the first weekend of February. Navy will play host to 2021 NCAA Tournament semifinalist North Carolina on Jan. 22 and follow up with scrimmages against VMI and reigning National Champion Virginia the following weekend (Jan. 29) in Charlottesville.

After claiming an 8-5 victory over Mount St. Mary's in its 2021 opener, Navy will again open its season with a Feb. 5 game against The Mount at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. The Mids have never lost to The Mount in their previous eight meetings and 2022 will mark the sixth time the two programs meet in Annapolis

The Mids will welcome the Mercer Bears to Annapolis the following Saturday (Feb. 12) in what will be the inaugural meeting between the two schools. Chad Surman is entering his seventh season with the Bears, second as head coach, and led Mercer to a 5-8 record a year ago.

Navy will spend the following weekend on Long Island where it will play at Hofstra on Feb. 18 before taking on Manhattan on Feb. 20 in a game that will be held at Hofstra. The Pride are led by 16th-year head coach Seth Tierney, who serves alongside Amplo on the staff of the U.S. Men's National Team. Hofstra finished the 2021 campaign with an 8-6 record, including a 4-4 mark in the Colonial Athletic Association, and just missed an NCAA Tournament bid after losing to Drexel in the CAA Championship Game. Navy holds a 13-6 series advantage over Hofstra, including a 7-3 mark in games played on Long Island. The last time the two teams played was in 1999 when Amplo was a senior defenseman at Hofstra.

After meeting for the first time in series history in 2020, Navy and Manhattan will square off on neutral ground on Feb. 20. Drew Kelleher is in his seventh season leading Manhattan and is coming off a season that saw the Jaspers post a 5-5 record and make the program's first trip to the MAAC Championship Game since 2009. Navy won the inaugural game 9-4 in what was Amplo's debut as the Mids' head coach.

Navy returns home to Annapolis where it will play High Point on Feb. 26 in what will be the first meeting between the two schools. Jon Torpey has been the head coach of the Panthers since the team's inception in 2010. High Point finished the 2021 season with an 8-6 record, including a 4-1 mark in the Southern Conference. The Panthers dealt top-seeded Richmond an 11-8 loss in the SoCon Championship Game to secure the program's second NCAA Tournament appearance.

The Midshipmen will begin their quest for a ninth Patriot League crown when they open conference play on March  5 at Lehigh. It will be just the fourth time in the program's 19 years as a member of the Patriot League that Navy will open conference action against the Mountain Hawks. It's just the second time since 2011 that Navy has not opened its conference slate against either Boston University or Bucknell. Meanwhile, it will be the 14th time Navy starts league play away from Annapolis (Home 2-3 / Road 5-7 / Neutral 1-0). This will also be the third-consecutive year Navy has played its regular-season contest against the Mountain Hawks in Bethlehem. Navy leads the all-time series, 32-10, however Lehigh has won four in a row against the Mids.

After not playing a year ago due to the COVID-19 pandemic and conference restrictions, Navy and Colgate will meet in Annapolis on March 12. The Mids lead the series against the Raiders 16-7, winning each of the last three including the 2020 contest that saw Navy outscore Colgate 8-6 in the second quarter to take the lead for good in a 16-14 victory. It was also the final contest of the season for the two programs, as the country shut down the following week due to the pandemic.

The much-anticipated return of the Navy-Johns Hopkins series was put on hold in 2020 when the pandemic arrived on American soil and the season came to an abrupt end just one day prior to the scheduled Navy-Johns Hopkins contest (March 14). This year's game, slated for March 18 at Homewood Field in Baltimore, will mark the 91st game in a series that began in 1908 on the banks of the Severn River. The Blue Jays have won five in a row in the series, including back-to-back one-goal games at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in 2014 (6-5) and 2016 (12-11 2OT). The last time the two programs met was on Feb. 7, 2017 in Baltimore.

Navy will close out the month of March at home when Holy Cross makes its first trip to Annapolis under the direction of second-year head coach and Naval Academy graduate J.L. Reppert. The two teams were set to play a year ago, however the entire Naval Academy was put on pause for nearly a month in an abundance of caution due to COVID-19. The March 26 matchup marks the ninth game played in Annapolis in the 18-game series that began in 2004. Navy owns a 14-3 series lead, including a 7-1 advantage at home.

Three of Navy's first-four games in the month of April will be played on the road, including the April 2 date at Boston University. Navy is up two games (4-2) in the series with each of the last four contests having been decided by two goals or less. Boston U. was one of the three Patriot League teams Navy did not play in 2021, as the two schools last met in Annapolis on April 26, 2019, with the Mids earning a 13-12 victory in the season finale.

Navy will play host to neighboring Loyola on April 9, just a year removed from the two programs meeting an unprecedented three times - twice in the regular season and in the Patriot League Tournament quarterfinals. After dropping a 14-10 decision to the Greyhounds in the first meeting, the Mids bounced back and dealt Loyola a 14-12 loss at Ridley Athletic Complex. It was Navy's first win at Loyola in series history, a series in which the Greyhounds lead 10-5.

Leading the all-time series 20-2, Navy will travel to Easton, Pa. for a third-consecutive year to face Lafayette on April 16. A year ago, Navy used a six-goal run that featured goals by six different players in the second quarter to overcome an early deficit and earn a 14-10 victory over the Leopards.

Army will play host to one of the sport's longest and most cherished rivalries, the Army-Navy game, on April 23 at Michie Stadium. This year's contest will mark the 102nd meeting in a series that began in 1924. Navy leads 62-36-3 and has won five of the last eight in the series, including last year's 9-4 rout in Annapolis.

Navy will play its regular-season finale on Friday, April 29 when it plays host to Bucknell at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. Winners of each of the last five meetings, the Mids own a 12-8 series advantage over the Bison, including a 7-3 mark in games played in Annapolis. Last year's Patriot League opener saw the Mids use a 6-1 run in the third quarter to secure a 13-10 victory over Bucknell in Annapolis.

The Patriot League Tournament will again feature six teams with the top two seeds receiving a bye, while quarterfinal contests will be played between the 3-6 and 4-5 seeds on Tuesday, May 3. The Patriot League semifinals will be played on Friday, May 6 at the site of the top seed with the championship slated for Sunday, May 8.

Navy's television, streaming and radio schedules will be announced at a later date.

### Go Navy ###