BALTIMORE, Md. – In a game that saw Navy take a three-score lead into halftime and UMBC rally with three late goals in a six-minute stretch, the Midshipmen (5-4-2) and Retrievers (5-2-3) finished in a 4-4 draw on Tuesday night at a packed Retrievers Soccer Park.
Senior standout
David Jackson extended his goal streak to three-straight games as he joined fellow senior
Cristian Coelho and sophomore
A.J. Schuetz in posting three-point performances to help push Navy's undefeated streak to five contests, while Alek Wroblewski scored a brace for a UMBC squad that had four players earn multiple points.
Navy took the lead in the 18th minute when a cross from sophomore
A.J. Schuetz found junior
Noah Ward on the far side of the box, and Ward quickly shuffled it off to Coelho, who fired a shot to the top right corner for his first goal of the season.
Ward then started another Navy goal sequence in the 27th minute when he put a pass into the corner for Coelho, who then crossed it into the box for sophomore
Andrew Schug, as Schug hesitated on a UMBC defender before beating Emigdio Tormo Lopez to the left post.
The Mids concluded its first-half scoring in the 34th minute, as a UMBC chance was cleared out to senior
Baba Kallie and he quickly passed it back to fellow senior
Jason Aoyama, who placed a through-ball to a streaking
David Jackson. Jackson then laid a cross over to Schuetz, who raced in and got around Tormo Lopez before firing it home.
After junior goalkeeper
Pierce Holbrook went up and caught a dangerous UMBC free kick to close out the first half, the Retrievers finally broke through when a great individual effort from Alek Wroblewski finished with him lasering a shot on Holbrook's far side in the 51st minute.
Jackson regained the three-goal cushion for Navy in the 67th minute after Kallie carried it up from midfield and shoveled it over, as Jackson then avoided a sliding defender and lifted a shot past Jailon Gillespie to extend his goal streak to three-straight games.
Despite nine second-half saves from Holbrook, UMBC continued to cut into the Navy lead, as Wroblewski used his heel to deflect a Jordan Travers cross in the 78th minute. Loc San then put the Retrievers within one score in the 81st minute when he rifled in a short cross from Taylor Calheira, while Calheira tallied the equalizer in the 84th minute after collecting a San rebound and firing a shot through a scrum of four players that snuck past a screened Holbrook.
With the two team both pressing in the final five minutes, Holbrook prevented UMBC from fully completing the comeback when he dove and deflected Lasse Kelp's free-kick attempt in the 89th minute, while a free kick for Navy in the dying seconds saw senior captain
Zach Wagner nearly put a header on net.
Holbrook wrapped up his night with a career-high 10 saves on 21 shots, including 16 shots faced in the second half, while Gillespie made one save in relief of Tormo Lopez.
Head Coach Tim O'Donohue Comments
"Obviously, it was a tales of two halves and a game of runs. I really like the way we are playing and we have to give them credit for getting some momentum at the end and finishing their chances. We are playing very well and I am proud of the effort from our guys. We will be ready for Boston on Saturday."
Match Notes
• Navy is now 19-7-7 in its all-time series with UMBC, with the team posting draws in their last three meetings.
• Holbrook's 10 saves are the most by a Navy goalie since Mac Burke tallied 12 against Colgate on Oct. 29, 2017.
• Coelho's three points (one goal, one assist) are a career high, as the midfielder now has three career scores, while Ward's two assists are also a career high.
• The last time Navy scored four goals in a contest was at American on Oct. 2, 2019.
• Jackson's seven goals on the season mark a career high and are the most by a Mid in a season since Jacob Williams' seven tallies in 2021.
• Jackson's 19 points and five assists both pace the Patriot League.
Up Next
Navy travels to Boston, Mass., on Saturday afternoon for a 1 p.m. Patriot League match against Boston University.
