WEST POINT, N.Y. //  Navy earned victories in two of the seven singles matches on Saturday and halved another, but it would not be enough to overcome Friday's 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 used the momentum gained from its one-point advantage (2.5-1.5) in the four-ball matches to propel the Black Knights to their third-consecutive Star Match victory against the Mids at West Point, while Army now holds a 3-1 lead in this year's Army-Navy Star Series presented by USAA.

Four-Ball Matches
Army scored the day's first point when John Heckel Jr. and Joshua Kim paired up for a 6&5 victory over the sophomore combo of Benjamin Valdez (Stevenson Ranch, Calif.) and Noah Nuez (Laveen, Ariz.). The Black Knights pushed their lead to 2-0 in what was a back-and-forth match featuring familiar foes in Army's Gary Bullard and Navy team captain Keegan Shreves (Potomac, Md.). The former high school teammates at Georgetown Prep squared off in the top four-ball matchup with Bullard and James Ballato just edging Shreves and rookie Chip Deegan (Newport Beach, Calif.) 1-up.

Navy held the upper hand in the remaining two matches nearly the entire day. Sophomores Andrew Wilkinson (Ashland, Va.) and Owen Huntington (Camas, Wash.) paired up to cruise to a 3&2 victory over Army's Dragon Theam and Samuel Kim. Huntington, who has been Navy's low scorer throughout the fall, was one of three Navy players making their Star Match debut.

Meanwhile, senior Braxton Tracy (Huntersville, N.C.) and freshman Jack Tarzy (Medford, N.J.) halved their match against Army's tandem of Marshall Daniel and Rob Ferris. After trailing by three following the turn on nine, Army pulled even on the 15th.

Singles
Army claimed the first-two wins of the day in singles action as John Heckel Jr. claimed a 7&6 win over Navy team captain Keegan Shreves, while Army's Joshua Kim picked up a 3&2 win against sophomore Benjamin Valdez.

Sophomore Owen Huntington made it a sweep for the weekend with his 2&1 win over Dragon Theam, while classmate Andrew Wilkinson also went 2-0 on the weekend following a 3&1 triumph over Gary Bullard. Huntington and Wilkinson paired up in four-ball action on Friday.

Freshman Chip Deegan halved his match against Samuel Kim, while Marshall Daniel clinched the victory for Army with a 4&3 win over Navy senior Braxton Tracy. James Ballato went on to outlast Navy rookie Jack Tarzy 2&1.

Army def. Navy, 7-4

Four-Ball Results (Army 2.5, Navy 1.5)
Gary Bullard / James Ballato (A) def. Keegan Shreves / Chip Deegan (N), 1-up
John Heckel Jr. / Joshua Kim (A) def. Benjamin Valdez / Noah Nuez (N), 6&5
Braxton Tracy / Jack Tarzy (N) halved Marshall Daniel / Rob Ferris (A)
Andrew Wilkinson / Owen Huntington (N) def. Dragon Theam / Samuel Kim (A), 3&2

Singles Matches (Army 4.5, Navy 2.5)
Josh Kim (A) def. Benjamin Valdez (N), 3&2
Owen Huntington (N) def. Dragon Theam (A), 2&1
John Heckel Jr. (A) def. Keegan Shreves (N), 7&6
Chip Deegan (N) halved Samuel Kim (A)
James Ballato (A) def. Jack Tarzy (N), 2&1
Andrew Wilkinson (N) def. Gary Bullard (A), 3&1
Marshall Daniel (A) def. Braxton Tracy (N), 4&3

### Go Navy ###