ANNAPOLIS, Md. - The Navy women's basketball team will wrap up its five-game homestand with a Saturday morning matchup against Rider. Building off an 84-point outing on Sunday versus Idaho and 13 three-pointers in their last game on Thursday night against Maryland Eastern Shore, Navy is aiming to put together a complete game and break into the win column on Saturday. The 11 a.m. contest between the Mids (0-8) and Broncs (2-4) is the second game of a home-and-home series that saw Navy knock off Rider on the road by a score of 73-59 in 2021.
The Navy-Rider Shore game will have live stats provided online, as well as be broadcast on the ESPN+ platform.
ESPN+ is a subscription-based streaming service that requires patrons to sign-up for monthly or yearly plans prior to tuning into the contest.
Scouting the Competition
Rider
The Broncs come into Saturday's game with a 2-4 record with victories over St. Francis Brooklyn (Nov. 13, 71-70 OT) and North Florida (Nov. 18, 76-67) ... Most recently, Rider faced off with Patriot League foe Lehigh on Wednesday, Nov. 30 at home. The Mountain Hawks led 19-12 after one quarter of play and later went ahead for good in the third quarter, though the Broncs drew within one point, 66-65 with 3:57 left in the fourth period. A 15-2 run to close the game gave the visitors an 81-67 victory. Jessika Schiffer led three Broncs in double-figures with 19 points on 7-14 shooting and a 5-9 mark from three-point range. Raphaela Toussaint (17 pts) and Makayla Firebaugh (14) also posted double-digit point totals ... In the 2022-23 MAAC preseason poll, Rider was picked to finish sixth in the 11-team conference. Of note in that same announcement, Makayla Firebaugh was voted to the All-MAAC Preseason Third Team.
Navy vs. Rider
The Mids and Broncs have met six times in women's basketball action in a series that begin on Nov. 18, 2007 ... That matchup at Alumni Hall in Annapolis ended with a 10-point victory for Navy, 68-58 ... All-time, Navy is 6-0 versus Rider with three of the six games being decided by 10 points or less ... Over three Navy-Rider matchups at Alumni Hall, the Mids are 3-0 with most recently a 19-point win of 63-44 on Nov. 30, 2017 ... Last year in Lawrenceville, Navy rolled to a 73-59 victory ... All-time versus Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) opponents, Navy is 28-32 in 60 previous meetings. Mount St. Mary's (9-19) is Navy's most common foe playing 28 times including this past Nov. 19 (L, 68-59).
All-time Matchups:
Dec. 12, 2021 (A): Navy 73-59
Dec. 2, 2018 (A): Navy 66 - Rider 60
Nov. 12, 2017 (H): Navy 63 - Rider 44
Nov. 30, 2013 (H): Navy 75 - Rider 64 (Navy Classic Tournament)
Dec. 19, 2008 (A): Navy 71 - Rider 64
Nov. 18, 2007 (H): Navy 68 - Rider 58
Most Recent Navy-Rider Matchup: December 12, 2021 in Lawrenceville, N.J.
The Navy women's basketball team wrapped up its non-conference schedule with an emphatic comeback performance on Sunday on the road at Rider, winning 73-59. Trailing 23-22 at half, the Mids turned in the eighth-highest scoring second half in program history as the team netted 51 points, while shooting 51 percent over the third and fourth quarters against the Broncs at Alumni Gymnasium.
Jennifer Coleman continued asserting herself as a premier all-around player as she came within one assist of a triple-double on Sunday. Playing 39 minutes, the senior guard finished with 27 points, 12 rebounds, nine assists and five steals, all totals that were game-highs. Sydne Watts played a pivotal role for the Mids in the third quarter when they overtook the Broncs; she finished with a career-high 18 points, including 10 in the third. Ciera Hertelendy gave Navy three double-figure scorers as the senior team captain netted 11 points. The Mids are now 2-0 this season when three players reach double figures.
Playing its first game in a week, Navy had a slow start to Sunday's tilt as the Mids shot just 23.1 percent (3-13) from the field and turned the ball on seven different occasions. Lindsay Llewellyn got Navy on the scoreboard first as she sank a corner three-pointer on the Mids' first possession. That basket was the only one for Navy until Coleman and Hertelendy netted back-to-back scores at 5:34 and 4:49. Hertelendy was fouled on her layup and converted the 'and-one' to allow the Mids to re-take the lead at 8-7. Rider tightened up its defense and shut out Navy for the remainder of the quarter as the Broncs held a five-point advantage at the first quarter break.
Mired in a five-minute scoreless streak going back into the first quarter, Coleman found Watts for a jumper in the paint on Navy's first possession of the second quarter. Baskets by Coleman at 8:53 and Savanna Lewis at 6:50 drew the Mids within one point of the Broncs' lead, though the hosts continued to hold onto their slight edge throughout the frame. Trailing 21-16 at the 3:14 mark, Watts and Coleman scored on two of Navy's next three times down the court to make it a one-point contest. Over the final 30 seconds of the first half both teams tallied two points to send the game into the intermission at 23-21.
After seemingly finding its offensive groove in the second quarter by shooting 46.7 percent (7-15) with just two turnovers, Navy improved on that field goal percentage, while adding a trio of three-pointers in the third quarter to record a 23-point output. Watts was powering the Mids' offense in the early action of the third as she put her team ahead by one with baskets at 9:21 and 7:57. Just over two minutes later, the sophomore made her third field goal of the quarter as Coleman pivoted the ball from the paint out to the wing where Watts swished a three-pointer to make it 33-33 at 5:49. A series of traded baskets over the next three minutes was capped off by another Watts three-pointer at 2:39. With the score knotted at that point, 38-38, the Mids closed out the quarter on a 7-1 run with all points coming from Coleman.
Up 45-39 after three quarters of action, Navy saw Rider pull within four on the strength of an early Raphaela Toussaint put-back at 9:12. From that juncture, the Mids found that next gear and scored 17 of next 19 points and moved out to a substantial 19-point lead of 62-43 at 5:26. Navy's defense was especially hostile towards Rider as the newly-inserted Darryl Langford helped lead a chaotic full-court press effort that resulted in two 10-second violations by the Broncs over a three-possession run of play. Langford played a role in the Mids' offensive effort too as Mimi Schrader found her for an easy layup after grabbing one of her four offensive rebounds on the afternoon at 8:16. That was one of the first five baskets in Navy's run that came from five different players. Comfortably ahead, Hertelendy netted Navy's next four points to give the Mids an 18-point lead of 66-48 at 3:43. Navy notched seven free throws in the final 67 seconds to round out its 28-point quarter and 73-59 victory. 28 points are the second-most in a fourth quarter in program history.
For the game, Navy outshot Rider, 44.4 percent (28-63) to 39.6 (21-53) from the field, 26.3 percent (5-19) to 25.0 (6-24) from three-point range and 66.7 percent (12-18) to 61.1 (11-18) from the foul line.
Comparing the Teams
| (2022-23 Stats) |
Navy |
Rider |
| Record / League-Only |
0-8 / 0-0 PL |
2-4 / 0-0 MAAC |
| Home /Away Record |
0-5 / 0-3 |
0-2 / 1-1 / 1-1 |
| Points Per Game |
59.9 PPG |
66.0 PPG |
| Points Allowed Per Game |
78.2 PPG |
75.8 PPG |
| Field Goal Percentage |
40.3 % |
42.6 % |
| 3-Point Percentage |
34.0 % |
35.4 % |
| Free Throw Percentage |
69.5 % |
71.6 % |
| Rebounds Per Game |
36.4 RPG |
30.7 RPG |
| Assists/Turnovers Per Game |
12.1 / 20.8 |
14.2 / 17.0 |
Individual Leaders
| (2022-23 Stats) |
Navy |
Rider |
| Points Per Game |
Watts, 17.8 ppg |
M. Firebaugh, 16.2 ppg |
| Rebounds Per Game |
Samson, 5.6 rpg |
R. Toussaint, 6.2 rpg |
| Assists Per Game |
Louridas/Schrader, 3.0 apg |
A. Mobley, 6.0 apg |
| Field Goal Percentage |
Samson, 51.9 % |
V. Toomey, 50.0 % |
| 3-Point Percentage |
Watts, 40.9 % |
M. Firebaugh, 40.4 % |
| Free Throw Percentage |
Watts, 92.9 % |
V. Toomey, 93.3 % |
Last Time Out: Thursday vs. Maryland Eastern Shore
The Navy women's basketball team continued to show glimpses of its potential on Thursday night as it led for over 27 minutes, including deep into the fourth quarter, but a tough stretch of action on both ends of the court resulted in a late 14-4 run by Maryland Eastern Shore to capture the 72-66 come-from-behind victory at Alumni Hall. Sparked by their three-point shooting throughout the game, the Mids (0-8) were felled by 18 turnovers that resulted in 23 points by the Hawks (3-6) as well as a 23-shot advantage in foul shots for the visitors.
Sydne Watts and Maren Louridas were at the forefront of Navy's three-point sharpshooting as the duo sank nine combined treys. For the game, Watts finished with a game-high 22 points on 8-of-16 shooting and a career-high five three-pointers, while Louridas filled up the box score with 14 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. In the best game of her young career, Shannon Clarke registered a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds over 21 minutes off the bench.
The action at Alumni Hall opened fast for the host Midshipmen as crisp ball movement, clean ball-handling and clutch three-point shooting aided Navy to a 20-14 lead through 10 minutes of play. As a team, the Mids had eight assists on eight baskets and just three turnovers. Of those eight made field goals, four were from three-point range.
Navy's marksmenship from three-point range continued into the second quarter as the team made a trio of treys over the initial 3:44 of play. Successful three-pointers by Clarke, Mimi Schrader and lastly by Watts helped the Mids build out a game-high nine-point lead of 29-20. A slight 6-2 run by the Hawks drew them back to within five, 31-26 at the 3:49 mark. Louridas re-entered the scoring conversation with a three-pointer of her own on the ensuing possession to put Navy ahead 34-26. Undeterred, Eastern Shore answered with an 8-0 streak to even the score, 34-34 with 21 seconds left. The connection of a Louridas pass into Kate Samson in the post and a turnaround jumper by the freshman center gave the Mids a 36-34 lead going into the locker room at halftime.
Coming out in the second half, Watts propelled Navy into an early six-point advantage with the first two made field goals to make it 40-34 at 8:17. A 9-0 run by Eastern Shore gave the visitors their first lead of the game. With the score 43-40 in favor of the Hawks, Clarke quickly hit a three-pointer as a rebuttal the next time down the court with 4:27 left in the quarter. The scoring slowed for both sides in the final minutes of the period as Eastern Shore netted six points versus five for Navy. The duo of Watts and Clarke continued to pace the Mids in the period and scored all 12 points as Watts finished with seven points, while Clarke had five.
Ahead 49-48 at the start of the fourth quarter, Eastern Shore increased its lead to three points by the 8:36 mark before Clarke struck again from distance to record her third three-pointer of the game. The freshman's trey was followed up by a Schrader jumper and a Watts free throw to put Navy back in the lead by three, 54-51 at 6:04. Three-pointers by Watts at 5:33 and later at 3:32 twice gave the Mids' four-point advantages. With the score 62-58, Eastern Shore battled back and nailed a three-pointer on its next possession to kick-start an 11-0 run over 3:08. Trailing 69-62, Navy received a pair of field goals in the final 24 seconds, but Eastern Shore connected on three free throws to clinch the 72-66 road victory.
For the game, Navy outshot Eastern Shore 38.5 percent (25-65) to 36.5 (23-63) from the field and 40.6 percent (13-32) to 37.5 (6-16) from three-point range. The Hawks had a significant advantage in opportunities at the free throw line and converted 66.7 percent (20-30) of their shots versus 42.9 (3-7) for the Mids. 13 successful three-pointers tie for tenth all-time in the program's single-game record book.
Defensively, The Mids were led by Samson's career-high five blocks. Eastern Shore left its mark in the defensive statline with 12 steals and forced Navy into 18 turnovers.
Parking / Shuttle
Fans are reminded that the general public does not have access to drive their vehicles on to the U.S. Naval Academy. Fans may park at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium for a fee and take a shuttle that will run every 10 minutes starting one hour before the game and will continue running until one hour after the game is completed. Fans 18 and over need a government-issued photo ID. Enter Gate 5 off Taylor Ave. to park at the stadium.
