ANNAPOLIS, Md. // Despite outscoring Loyola 8-6 in the second half, an 8-2 halftime deficit would prove to be too much for the 17th-ranked Navy men's lacrosse team (3-1, 1-1 Patriot League, 1-1 PL South Division) to overcome as the No. 15 Greyhounds (5-3, 3-1 Patriot League, 3-1 PL South Division) dealt the Mids their first loss of the season (14-10) Saturday afternoon at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.

Loyola held the Midshipmen scoreless for the first 19 minutes of the games and raced out to a 4-0 lead in a contest in which the Greyhounds would never trail. Loyola built its 4-0 lead on goals by four different players, including back-to-back goals just 68 seconds apart to open the game by middies Evan James (13:32) and Riley Seay (12:24).

The Mids finally broke the scoring drought at the 10:52 mark in the second quarter when midfielder Patrick Skalniak (So / Dallas, Texas) buried his shot over Loyola keeper Sam Shafer's left shoulder off an assist from Nick Cole (Jr / Ashburn, Va.). The goal extended streaks by Skalniak in both the points (9) and goals (5) columns.

Meanwhile, Cole, again the play-maker, found attackman Jon Jarosz (Fr / Gambrills, Md.) for the goal at 8:17, trimming Loyola's lead to just two (4-2). However, the Greyhounds answered just 42 seconds later with a Seay goal, triggering a 4-0 run by Loyola and giving it a comfortable six-goal advantage (8-2) at the break.

The third quarter featured four goals by each team, including a pair by Navy co-captain Christian Daniel (Sr / Owings, Md.). The first came just 53 seconds into the second half and marked his 100th collegiate point. He is the 36th Navy player to reach the 100-point milestone and the 12th-fastest (35 gms) in program history.

Meanwhile, Skalniak and James Flannery (So / Garrett Park, Md.) scored the final two goals of the frame to make it 12-6.

Loyola, however, scored back-to-back goals 71 seconds apart to open the fourth quarter and pushed its lead back to eight with 12:45 to go.

Navy tried to pull off a miracle comeback as the defense would hold the Greyhounds without a goal for the remainder of the game. Meanwhile, the Mids scored the final four goals of the contest, one each by Skalniak, Jarosz, Daniel and short-stick defensive middie Tim Griffin (Sr / Rockville, Md.), but it would not be enough in what was Navy's first loss of the season and fourth in a row to the Patriot League preseason favorite Greyhounds.

Skalniak turned in his first-collegiate hat trick as he led the Mids with five points on three goals and a pair of assists. Daniel, who owns the team's longest active point and goal-scoring streak at 10-consecutive games, recorded his second hat trick of the season and 19th of his career with three goals. Cole, meanwhile, continues to make strides in his move to the midfield where he dealt out three assists.

First-year starter Spencer Rees (Sr / Baltimore, Md.) made 13 saves between the pipes, while co-captain Nick Franchuk (Sr / Southport, Conn.) recorded a team-high three caused turnovers and rookie Jackson Bonitz (Shrewsbury, Pa.) paced the team with seven ground balls and a pair of takeaways.

Perhaps the biggest difference in the contest stemmed from the faceoff game where Loyola dominated. Navy used three different faceoff men - Nick Barry (Jr / Islip, N.Y.)(5-17), Nate Hammond (So / Lincoln University, Pa.)(0-2) and Jacob Jarosz  (Jr / Gambrills, Md.)(4-9) - against Bailey Savio who was sensational, winning 19 of 28 draws and grabbing a team-high 16 ground balls. Savio shattered the record for most ground balls by an opposing player at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium which had previously been set by VMI's Stephen Robarge with 10 on Feb. 7, 2009 and later matched by Boston University's Reece Eddy on April 26, 2019.

The Greyhounds were led by senior attackman Kevin Lindley's five points on three goals and two assists, while second-year attackman Joey Kamish added four points on two goals and two assists. Senior attackman Aidan Olmstead, who came into the game ranked 27th nationally in points per game (4.57) and 16th in assists per game (2.57), finished under his average in both categories with three points on two goals and a single assist.

Patriot League Preseason Defensive Player of the Year Ryan McNulty played a solid game, forcing a pair of Navy turnovers, while grabbing three ground balls and producing a goal and an assist. Shafer finished the afternoon with 12 saves for the Greyhounds.

Navy will play its first road game of the 2021 campaign next Saturday when it travels to Bethlehem, Pa. to face 11th-ranked Lehigh. The Mountain Hawks, who have already beaten Loyola, are coming off a one-goal victory over No. 7 Army this afternoon. Part of a men's and women's doubleheader, the Navy women will face Lehigh at 12:00 pm, followed the Navy men at approximately 4:00 pm. Both games will be carried live on ESPN+, however there will be no radio coverage.

### Go Navy ###