CHESTER, Pa. – Navy men's soccer (4-2-1) finished off its 2020-21 campaign on Sunday afternoon against Army (3-3-1) where the Midshipmen suffered a 2-0 setback against the Black Knights at Subaru Park.
 
"I do not think we had a particularly good performance today," remarked head coach Tim O'Donohue. "We had a little trouble finding our rhythm; Army was very disruptive and we were not able to play the way we normally do. We were playing well and getting some dangerous shots on goal right before they scored.
 
"This result is disappointing, but I thought the effort was there and at the level we needed for this game. However, we were not as sharp on the ball as we have been all year and they took advantage of that."
 
Army had a nose for the goal from the opening touch as the Black Knights tallied three shots and a pair of corner kicks in the opening 4:35 of play. That third shot nearly found its way into the back of the net as it passed the Mids' goalkeeper Ian Bramblett (Sr., Easley, S.C.), but Toni Adewole (Sr., Clarksburg, Md.) dove in from the side and cleared the ball off the goal line for the save.
 
After that opening burst of offensive activity, the level of physicality between Army and Navy elevated exponentially as teams combined for 14 fouls over the next 20 minutes of action. During this span of play, the Midshipmen were able to make offensive in-roads as Bayne Bentley (Jr., Austin, Texas) worked a tight give-and-go near the 18-yard box with Nicko West (Sr., Mansfield, Texas), that concluded with Bentley unleashing a well-struck shot on goal. Unfortunately for Navy, Army's goalkeeper Josh Taylor was there the make the save in the 22nd minute.
 
The opening half finished with a flurry of tense action deep in the attacking thirds of each side. Over the final eight minutes of play, Bramblett and Taylor each had their number called upon to make a pair of saves. Navy's attempts came courtesy of a David Jackson (Fr., Cypress, Texas) set piece shot on goal in the 39th minute and Matt Nocita (Jr., Porter Ranch, Calif.) flicking on a curling corner kick with just seconds to go in the period.
 
At the end of the scoreless first half, Army held a minimal edge in shots, 7-5, though both teams were credited with three shots on goal. There were 23 combined fouls called, 13 on the Black Knights and 10 on the Mids.
 
That run of potent offensive chances picked up immediately in the second half as Jacob Williams (Jr., Millersville, Md.) looked to break Navy onto the scoreboard as he was on the receiving end of Wyatt Millard (Sr., Columbia, S.C.) pass at the top of a crowded 18-yard box. A quick opposite shoulder shake gave Williams the space he needed to rip a shot that had eyes for the upper-90 if not for a full-extension and leap from Taylor.
 
A little over a minute later, Army forced a turnover deep in Navy's defensive third and immediately saw John Poncy gather the ball and slot a low shot into the right corner of the net in the 48th minute.
 
Down 1-0, the Mids began their hunt for that game-tying goal, but the Black Knights were quick to turn the momentum back in their favor with their second score of the game, an Oscar Pereira strike from 25-plus yards out that rang inside the upper-left 90 corner at 58:31.
 
Navy continued its comeback aspirations over the final 31 minutes and nearly shaved a goal off its deficit in the 70th minute as the team had back-to-back corner kick chances within 30 seconds of each other, the first corner resulted in West's shot towards goal deflected away by an Army defender. The Mids' persistent pressure reached a crescendo in the 74th minute when West was fouled in the box and Navy was awarded a penalty kick. In an unlucky break for the Mids, Taylor denied Jackson's penalty kick attempt as his foot dangled just long enough to deflect the shot that was placed behind him.
 
The Mids kept searching for their first marker of the afternoon, but their final two shots were unable to find the net.
 
In the 2-0 decision for Army, both teams finished with 12 shots, six each on goal. The Mids had an 8-5 advantage in corner kicks over the Black Knights. The contest finished with 40 combined fouls, 24 for Army and 16 for Navy. The Black Knights were assessed five yellow cards on Sunday.
 
"This is a great group of guys so I am disappointed for them. I am disappointed that we did not play well today and that we did not get it done. I am disappointed for the seniors, they've been such an important part of our program the past four years," O'Donohue said after the match. "Now we try to move forward, the fall season is only three months away. We need to learn from today and learn from this year. It has been a difficult year. We only had seven games and to have it end today, that is a sour taste in our mouth. We have got to rebound, we will have a full 20-game season in three months and we are going to be ready to make a run."
 
The Midshipmen cap off their 2020-21 campaign with a record of 4-2-1 overall.