ANNAPOLIS, Md. - After moving into first place in the Rugby East last week, the Navy men's rugby team (7-0, 4-0) takes a break from its conference slate to battle Air Force (3-2, 1-2) on Saturday at the Prusmack Rugby Center in Annapolis, Md. 

The Mids will square off against the Falcons at 10 a.m. and look to claim the Lt. Col. Kevin Shea Memorial Rugby Cup for the sixth-consecutive time the two teams have faced each other. 

Fans can stream the match for free on Navy Athletics YouTube with links provided on NavySports.com(.)

"We are very excited to welcome Air Force to Annapolis for our annual Lt. Col. Kevin Shea Trophy match. We have a welcome break from our conference games and will look to try a few different combinations against Air Force," said director of rugby Gavin Hickie. "Some of our guys will get their first start of the season and they are raring to go. We are also looking forward to Friday evening and meeting with our alumni. It's never lost on us that we would not be here if not for their support. Go Navy, beat Air Force."

Notes For Traveling Fans
• There is no admission charge for rugby matches at Prusmack Rugby Center.
• Spectator parking is available in the lots on the north side of the Brigade Sports Complex (64 Greenbury Point Road, Annapolis, MD 21402). Overflow parking is available in the open space on the west side of the facility.
• Alcohol consumption is prohibited at the Prusmack Rugby Center and surrounding parking areas.

Recap of St. Bonaventure Match
Navy and St. Bonaventure clashed in rainy conditions last Saturday for first place in the Rugby East Standings. The Mids used an excellent defensive outing to win the contest, 15-3.

Navy scored the first points of the match in the 24th minute. Landon Opp gave the Mids a short field with a free kick to form a lineout at the five-meter line. The Bonnies stopped the initial maul attack and forced the ball out wide. Sean MacLaney made a great pass to Roanin Krieger and he slipped through two tackles to score a try. Krieger also made the conversion kick after his score to give Navy a 7-0 advantage.

Opp advanced the Mids into their offensive zone shortly after kickoff with a 20-meter run on a kick return. A penalty against St. Bonaventure during Navy's offensive push awarded Opp a free kick and he booted the ball down to the five-meter line. Jacob D'Amico was credited with a try in the 30th minute during the maul attack to put the Mids ahead, 12-0. 

The Bonnies received their best field position of the first half after Aidan Gerber dropped the ensuing kickoff for a knock-on penalty. A defensive penalty against Navy gifted a penalty kick to St. Bonaventure and its kicker nailed the attempt in the 34th minute to make the score, 12-3.

Missed opportunities were the story in the second half for the Mids. Navy drove inside its five-meter line three times between the 40th and 55th minutes, but was unable to add points to its lead. Coach Hickie opted to go for a penalty kick in the 56th minute after the missed chances near the try line. Krieger made the kick from 15-meters away to reclaim a 12-point lead for the Mids.

St. Bonaventure made an excellent play on the kickoff to gain possession inside its offensive 22-meter zone for the first time in the second half. The Bonnies blasted the kickoff high in the air and the ball was caught right at the 22-meter line. With Navy's defense out of position, St. Bonaventure easily drove down the field and was less than a meter away from the try zone. The Mids regrouped on defense and forced a knock-on penalty to regain possession. 

St. Bonaventure drove inside its offensive 22-meter zone twice in the final 10 minutes of play, but Navy took the ball away on both possessions to clinch the victory. 

Navy Notes
• Last Saturday's victory extended Navy's winning streak to 25 matches to remain undefeated since becoming a varsity team. 
• Although higher levels of competition have decreased the scoring numbers for the Mids, they have continued to impose their will defensively. Navy has surrendered just 53 points (7.6 PPG) and only seven tries in its seven matches this season. 
• The Bonnies entered the match averaging 31.3 points per game offensively, but only scored three against the Mids. The match marked St. Bonaventure's worst offensive performance since it was shut out by Army in 2021. 
• A big difference in the match was tackling success. The Mids made 110 tackles and only missed 16 (87 percent), while the Bonnies made 89 tackles, but missed 51 (64 percent). 
• Saturday marked the third time this fall that Navy's opponent has finished with 50 or more missed tackles. The two additional opponents were Indiana (53) and Notre Dame (50). 
• Coach Hickie expressed his frustration with the number of penalties committed by the Mids. Navy totaled 12 penalties in the match, three of which were during scrums. 

Navy Individual Notes
• The Bonnies had no answer in stopping Opp when he had the ball. He led the Mids with 95-meters gained on only eight carries and finished with 17 broken tackles. 
• Vaughn Schmitz took another step forward at 8-man against St. Bonaventure. He ended with 45-meters gained on seven carries. Additionally, he accounted for two of Navy's five line breaks and broke six tackles. 
• Krieger needs to score just two more points to reach 100-points scored this season. The sophomore didn't surpass 100 points last season until the Division I-A Playoff victory against Lindenwood (17 games). Krieger has scored at least 10 points in all six games he has appeared in this fall. 
• Sophomores D'Amico, Reece Thacker and Austin Taylor played a huge role for the Mids in shutting down the Bonnies. The trio combined for 26 tackles and missed only missed four tackles. Thacker and Taylor were also vital as lineout jumpers in the contest. 
• Avion Ganse had another excellent match in gaining Navy territory through kicking. The freshman finished with 223-meters kicked on only five attempts to average 44.6 meters per kick. 

Navy vs. Air Force Notes
• Navy won last year's matchup against Air Force in Glendale, Colo., 71-0. The Mids have won the last five contests against the Falcons.
• Navy's scoring total against Air Force is currently tied for its fifth-most points scored in a match. 
• A majority of the scoring took place in the second half. The Mids struck for 47 points in the final 40 minutes, which is their fourth-highest point total in a single half. 
• Navy will look for someone to replicate Lewis Gray's success in last year's matchup. Gray scored two tries to finish with 10 points. He also led the Mids with 101-meters gained, 10 broken tackles, four line breaks and 321-meters kicked. 
• The Falcons spent the majority of the game in their defensive zone. Navy kept the ball in its offensive half of the pitch for 80 percent of the match and limited Air Force to only 13 attacking minutes. 
• Another key stat for the Mids was limiting penalties. Air Force compiled 12 penalties in the game, while Navy was called for only six. 
• Coach Hickie has won all five matches against the Falcons since becoming the director of rugby in 2017. His wins have also been well in Navy's favor, outscoring Air Force, 301-34, in the last five contests. The Mids have surrendered just five points in the last three meetings.

Coach Hickie's History Against Air Force
2017 - Win - 46-7
2018 - Win - 38-22
2019 - Win - 81-5
2020 - No match played due to Covid 19
2021 - Win - 65-0
2022 - Win - 71-0

Hear From Vice-Captain Sean MacLaney
Vice-captain Sean MacLaney sat down with Pete Medhurst this week on the Navy Sports Magazine to discuss Saturday's match and his journey to the Naval Academy. Fans can watch the interview HERE.

Rugby East Updates
The Mids jumped into first place in the Rugby East with their win over the Bonnies. Navy leads the conference with 18 points, followed by St. Bonaventure in second place with 14. The Mids keeping the Bonnies off the scoreboard late in the match was critical. Had St. Bonaventure shrunk Navy's lead to seven points or less, it could have still earned one point toward its standing in the Rugby East.

Army picked up a key win on the road at Queens. The Black Knights defeated the Royals, 26-7, to move into third place in the conference standings. 

Kutztown dropped to 0-4 in league play after falling to Notre Dame College, 19-7.  NDC is now tied with Life for fourth place in the league rankings. The Running Eagles now lead the south division after beating Southern Virginia, 87-10. 

Fans can view the Rugby East standings HERE and this weekend's conference schedule HERE.

Lt. Col. Kevin Shea Memorial Rugby Cup
Saturday's contest is more than just a match between two rival programs. Navy and Air Force will compete for the Shea Memorial Rugby Cup in honor of Lt. Col. Kevin Shea.
 
Shea graduated from the Air Force Academy in 1989, where he lettered in football and played rugby. He played in the 1987 Freedom Bowl and was a member of Air Force's rugby team that won the 1989 collegiate national championship. Upon graduation, he was cross-commissioned as a Marine second lieutenant. He continued his rugby career as a player with the All-Marine and Combined Services rugby teams. 

Eventually assigned to the First Recon, Shea's first combat deployment was during the First Gulf War. He was promoted to the rank of major in 1999. He then earned a master of science degree in electrical engineering at the Naval Postgraduate School in California and went on to teach electrical engineering at the Naval Academy. While in Annapolis, Shea served as an assistant coach of the Navy men's rugby team from 2000-03. Additionally, the class of 2003 selected him as an honorary graduate of the Naval Academy. After his time at Navy, he reported to the 1st Marine Division and deployed to Iraq as the regimental communications officer for the 1st Marines. Shea was selected for lieutenant colonel while deployed and was to take command of the 9th Communication Battalion.

Shea was killed in action on Sept. 14, 2004, his 38th birthday. He was nominated for a Bronze Star with Valor prior to his death.

Janowsky Speaks on What Lt. Col. Kevin Shea Means to Him
Senior Nick Janowsky spoke with Navy director of multimedia Luke Slabaugh about the impact of Lt. Col. Kevin Shea and what Saturday's match means to him. Fans can watch the feature HERE. 

Up Next
Navy returns to its conference schedule to play host to Notre Dame College next Saturday. The contest will be the final home game of the fall season. Kickoff is scheduled for noon at the Prusmack Rugby Center in Annapolis, Md.