WEST POINT, N.Y.  // Navy earned victories in three of the seven singles matches on Sunday and halved another, but it would not be enough to overcome Saturday's 3.5-0.5 deficit as the Mids dropped a 7-4 decision in the annual Army-Navy men's golf Star Match played at the West Point Golf Course.

Army raced out to an early advantage following Saturday's four-ball matches that saw three of the four matches decided on the 18th green. Michael Brennan (Sr / Locust Valley, N.Y.) and Keegan Shreves (So / Potomac, Md.) were 1-down on the 16th when Brennan's shot hit the hole and spun out, tying the hole. The following hole would be equally as frustrating as again, the Mids' birdie putt dipped in and out of the cup, a shot that would have given the hole to the Mids. Army's Gary Bullard, a high school teammate of Shreves, went on to roll in a 12-footer to give the Black Knights the victory.

Team captain Charlie Musto (Sr / Sterling, Va.) and David Miccoli (Jr / Ludlow, Mass.) fought back after a fast start on the front nine by Army's Dragon Theam and Marshall Daniel. Army, whose ball was nestled on the hillside in the left rough, blasted its shot high in the air and it made its way in for an eagle to secure the 2-up victory.

The Navy tandem of Ward Wilkinson (Sr / Ashland, Va.) and Nicholas Klock (Jr / Moraga, Calif.) were 1-up heading into the 18th, however, their Army counterparts, James McKee and Sam McGee, were able to halve the point after sinking a putt for birdie. The half point would be Navy's lone points of the day.

Heading into Sunday's singles, Navy needed at minimum a combination of five points to force a playoff or 5.5 to secure the win. The Mids, however, earned just 3.5 points to fall short in their comeback bid.

Musto bounced back from a tough doubles loss to post a 4 and 2 win over James Ballato in what was his final Star Match appearance. Meanwhile, Shreves scored his second-consecutive Star Match singles victory behind a 1-up win against James McKee. Klock, meanwhile, made eight birdies on the day to pick up a 1-up victory over Gary bullard. Wilkinson went on the halve his match against Theam.

Despite the Mids' loss on the links, Navy owns an 11-5 advantage in the Army-Navy Star Series Presented by USAA with three remaining competitions - men's lacrosse (April 24), men's soccer (April 25) and baseball (May 8).

The Mids will seek their eighth Patriot League Championship team title when the eight league teams converge upon the Naval Academy Golf Club the weekend of May 1-2 to compete in the two-day, 54-hole championship. Navy last won the tournament title in 2018 when Charlie Musto claimed both Rookie and Player of the Year honors as the tournament's individual medalist. Last year's championship was canceled due to the pandemic.

Army def. Navy, 7-4
Four-Ball Matches
Ward Wilkinson-Nicholas Klock (N) halved James McKee-Sam McGee
Gary Bullard-Lake Kim def. Michael Brennan-Keegan Shreves, 1-up
Tom Katsenes-James Ballato def. Chad Deegan-Will Meshad, 4 and 3
Dragon Theam-Marshall Daniel def. Charlie Musto-David Miccoli, 2-up

Singles Matches
Nicholas Klock (N) def Gary Bullard, 1-up
Charlie Musto (N) def James Ballato, 3 and 2
Keegan Shreves (N) def James McKee, 1-up
Tom Katsenes def Michael Brennan (N), 5 and 3
Sam McGee def David Miccoli (N), 1-up
Dragon Theam halved Ward Wilkinson (N)
Marshall Daniel def Chad Deegan (N), 3 and 2