ANNAPOLIS, Md. – After a thrilling quarterfinal win at home over Lafayette, the fourth-seeded Navy men's soccer team (6-4-8) hits the road for Massachusetts and a Patriot League Tournament Semifinal showdown against No. 2 seed Boston University (6-5-6) at 6 p.m. Tuesday night from Nickerson Field. The Midshipmen and Terriers will play for a spot in Saturday's league championship match, with the winning side playing the winner of Tuesday's other semifinal between No. 6 American and No. 1 Army.
 
Navy is eying its first trip to the Patriot League finals since the 2013 season, while the Terriers aim for its second trip to the PL championship game in program history, as Tuesday also marks the first time in series history that the two schools will face off in the postseason.
 
Jackson Wins PL Midfielder of the Year
David Jackson matched preseason predictions, as the Navy junior was named the 2022 Patriot League Midfielder of the Year on Friday … Picked as the Preseason PL Midfielder of the Year in August, Jackson earned the league's top midfielder award after tallying a team-high six goals to go along with three assists in 16 games played … The Cypress, Texas native made history when he put together a five-game scoring streak from Sept. 9-28, the longest goal streak by a Navy player since 1968, and had three-straight contests with a penalty-kick goal during that stretch.
 
Four Mids Named All-Patriot League
Jackson was one of four Midshipmen to pick up all-league honors on Friday, as Jackson was named to the All-Patriot League First Team along with senior defender JD Wagner, while junior forward Baba Kallie was picked to the All-Patriot League Second Team and sophomore midfielder Noah Ward received All-Patriot League Third Team accolades … A third-team selection last season, Wagner finished the regular season with one assist and 16 starts, as the team captain was part of a Navy backline that held opponents to one goal per game in the regular season … Finishing second on the team with four goals, Kallie earned all-league honors for the third-straight season, adding on a career-high two assists and pacing the Mids with 29 shots entering the postseason … Ward was third on the team with six points, notching four assists on the season and tallying his first collegiate goal at Lehigh last month.
 
Navy vs. Boston in the Postseason
The Mids and Terriers have yet to face each other in a postseason setting … The two sides have only qualified for the same league tournament once (2014) since BU joined the Patriot League in 2013 … That 2014 PL Tournament saw second-seeded Navy fall via penalty kicks to No. 5 seed Bucknell in the semifinal round, while top-seeded Boston defeated No. 6 seed Army in double overtime in the semifinals before falling to the Bison in the championship game in overtime.
 
Mids in the Patriot League Tournament
This marks the second-straight season and the third time in four years that Navy has qualified for the Patriot League Tournament … With Saturday's win, Navy also advanced to the PL Semifinals for the second-straight season and will make its 12th appearance in the league's semifinal round on Tuesday … Navy has a 7-7-4 record in league tournament games, going 4-3-4 in PL semifinal matches … The Mids are 3-2-3 all-time when playing in true road games in the league tournament … After a goal from sophomore Charlie Kriel helped the Mids grab a 1-0 shutout at No. 4 Lehigh in the 2021 quarterfinals, fifth-seeded Navy fell in the league semifinals to No. 2 American, 4-2, despite a goal and assist from Jackson.
 
Navy-Boston Series History
Navy enters Tuesday trailing 2-6-1 in its all-time series with Boston University that dates back to 2013 … The Mids are 0-5-0 when playing the Terriers in Boston, with the last four trips all resulting in 1-0 defeats Navy's last trip to Boston came last fall, while the two sides did not play in the spring of 2021 … In the two sides' meeting earlier this season, Navy used the first goal of the campaign from junior winger Jason Aoyama to propel the team to a 1-1 draw against BU on Oct. 1 in Annapolis, as senior goalkeeper Thomas Pearson made one save in his first collegiate start.
 
Midshipmen Discipline
With an average of 8.61 fouls per game, Navy is committing the fifth-fewest fouls in the nation, tied with American for the Patriot League low … The Mids also have the second-fewest amount on yellow cards in the NCAA this season at 16, with only Missouri State having less than Navy at seven yellow cards.
 
Navy Goalkeeping Standing Strong
Holbrook has been a key part of the Midshipmen's success this season, as the netminder ranks 28th nationally and second in the conference at a .795 save percentage, while his 58 saves lead the Patriot League … Holbrook (16 starts) and Pearson (two starts) have combined to post a .785 team save percentage that sits 26th in the NCAA, while the Navy defense has held opponents to a 0.944 goals against average which ranks 35th in the country.
 
Breaking Even
The Midshipmen's eight draws this season are a program record, eclipsing the previous program high of five (2014, 2011, 1989) … Navy's five ties in Patriot League play are also a program record … The eight draws are tied for second-most in the nation this season with Loyola Maryland, Milwaukee and Saint Joseph's, while Fordham is leading the nation at nine ties.
 
Navy Notes
The current Navy senior class have helped the Mids post a 34-16-11 overall record during their four years with the program … Since ending the 2018 season on a four-game winning streak, Navy is 20-9-7 in Patriot League regular-season games … Navy is 8-0-2 over the past three seasons Kallie records a goal, 8-2-3 when Jackson scores and 3-0-2 in games where Aoyama registers a tally.
 
Last Time Out
A 25th-minute tally from Aoyama and a last-minute save from Holbrook on Saturday night secured a 1-0 shutout victory for No. 4 seed Navy over fifth-seeded Lafayette in the Patriot League Quarterfinals at Glenn Warner Soccer Facility … The victory guaranteed the Mids a winning record for the fourth-straight season, a feat that has not been accomplished by Navy since 1973-80 … Missing two starters in Jackson (yellow card accumulation) and freshman defender Jalen Grant (injury), the Mids were still able to come out with offensive pressure in the opening half that included a Kallie shot on goal just 13 seconds into the contest … Aoyama broke the scoreless tie at 25' when junior defender Zach Wagner launched a pass from the midfield line down to Kallie at the 20-yard mark, with Kallie quickly crossing a pass to Aoyama inside the box and Aoyama firing a shot to the left post from 16 yards away … The game picked up in intensity once the clock hit the 80th minute, as Holbrook scooped up a Sebastian Varela shot … Holbrook used his jumps to save a Jack Borden shot at 86', leaping to deflect Borden's shot over the crossbar onto the top of the net, and he clinched the Navy win with 41 seconds left when he dove to his right to deflect Lombard's shot over the crossbar … Saturday marked Navy's first-ever postseason win over the Leopards.
 
Scouting the Terriers
Boston boasts two major conference award winners, as Griffin Roach was named the PL Defender of the Year and Francesco Montali was voted as the Patriot League's top goalkeeper … Montali and Roach were joined on the All-Patriot League First Team by midfielder Colin Innes, while Quinn Matulis was a second-team all-league selection and the duo of forward Andrew Rent and defender Evan Morrison earned all-league third team honors … Montali's 0.671 goals against average ranks 15th nationally and his .833 save percentage puts him sixth in the NCAA, with both marks leading the Patriot League … The team's 0.471 shutout percentage ranks 16th in the nation … Innes and Matulis both have a team-high four goals for the Terriers, while Rent's five assists pace the BU offense … The Terriers hold a 4-1-4 record at home this season, while BU is 1-2-3 in Patriot League Tournament games since joining the conference.