ANNAPOLIS, Md. —  Army team captain John Heckel Jr. sank a short putt for par on the first playoff hole to lead the Black Knights to sudden victory (5.5-5.5) over Navy in the annual Star Match played Thursday and Friday at the Naval Academy Golf Club in Annapolis. It marked the second-consecutive Star Match played in Annapolis to be decided in a playoff, as Navy's Nicholas Klock led the Mids to victory in 2021.

Army overcame the odds to claim victory after opening the day facing a 4-0 deficit thanks to the Mids sweeping the Black Knights in Thursday's fourball matches. Army went on to capture five singles matches and tied the final match of the day to force a playoff. Heckel Jr. playoff win led the Black Knights to the first star in this year's Army-Navy Star Series presented by USAA.

Singles (Friday)
Down 4-0, Army began its quest for the Star by taking the first two singles matches of the day. Heckel Jr. captured a 1-up victory over Navy's Jack Tarzy (So / Medford, N.J.) in one of just two matches that reached the 18th hole on the day, while Samuel Kim picked up a 2&1 win over Owen Huntington (Jr / Camas, Wash.). It was Huntington's first loss in an Army-Navy Star Match as he swept both his doubles and singles matches a year ago and paired up with Derek Weaver (So / Hackettstown, N.J.) on Thursday to capture the doubles point.

The Black Knights found themselves even with the Midshipmen at 4-all when senior James Ballato posted a 6&4 win against Navy rookie Jack Teuschl ( Oakton, Va.) and freshman Drew Jeffords picked up a 5&4 victory over fellow freshman Danny Auffant of Navy.

Navy pulled ahead thanks to a 3&1 victory by team captain Benjamin Valdez (Jr / Stevenson Ranch, Calif.) over Josh Kim. Army, though, answered when Zach Clark scored a 2&1 win over Navy's Noah Nuez (Jr / Laveen, Ariz.).

The final match pit a senior, Lake Kim of Army, against a newcomer, Luke Lombardo (Severna Park, Md.), of Navy. Lombardo led by as many as 3, but Kim began chipping away at Lombardo's lead over the final seven holes. Kim's win on the 15th brought the match all square and stayed that way to the conclusion of the match. Kim had a chance to go up in the match on the 17th, but his short putt went wide, while Lombardo's 12-foot putt came up a half inch shy of clinching the match on the 18th.

Heckel Jr. and Valdez met on the first hole for a playoff and both had similar shots to make their way onto the green. Valez's third shot sailed past the cup and settled at the edge of the opposite side of the green, while his fourth couldn't quite clear the slight hill and rolled backwards. Heckel Jr., meanwhile, used his third shot to set up his match-winning putt for par from just 4 feet out.

Fourball Matches (Thursday)
Navy swept Army in the fourball competition, marking just the third time in the last 22 meetings that one of the two teams has swept the fourball competition. Army led Navy 4-0 en route to a 10-1 victory in 2014, while in 2002, Navy held a 4-0 lead before securing the 8-3 win. Meanwhile, it's only the second time in the last 14 Star Matches and the first since 2016 that Navy held the lead after the opening day of competition.

Both of Navy's first two wins came after play completed on the 15th hole. Valdez and Nuez provided the Mids with their first win behind a 5&3 victory over Army's James Ballato (Sr) and Zach Clark (Fr), while Tarzy and Teuschl put the Mids up 2-0 with a 4&3 win over Josh Kim (Jr) and Drew Jeffords (Fr). Teuschl eagled the ninth with a beauty from the fairway and followed up with a birdie on the 10th to help the pair build their lead midway through the match.

The all-freshman team of Auffant and Lombardo squared off against Army's top player and team captain John Heckel Jr. and rookie Zach Clark. The foursome went nose to nose throughout the competition with the Navy pair securing the 1-up win as Lombardo calmly sank a 6-foot putt on the 18th.

The final match was a see-saw affair that featured Huntington and Weaver vs. Army's Lake Kim and Samuel Kim. Army took a 1-up lead on the 15th, however, Huntington and Weaver battled back on the 16th to square the match. The Mids took the lead on the 17th, one of the toughest holes on the course, and held on the 18th for the 1-up victory.

Up Next
Benjamin Valdez will represent Navy at the Jackson T. Stephens Cup slated to be played Monday and Tuesday at Trinity Forest Golf Club in Dallas, Texas.

Oct. 5-6, 2023 | Annapolis, Md.
Army 5.5 | Navy 5.5
Playoff: John Heckel Jr. (A) def. Ben Valdez (N)

Fourball Matches (Navy 4, Army 0)
Luke Lombardo / Danny Auffant (N) def. John Heckel Jr. / Zach Clark (A), 1-up
Benjamin Valdez / Noah Nuez (N) def. James Ballato / Patrick Song (A), 5&3
Owen Huntington / Derek Weaver (N) def Lake Kim / Samuel Kim (A), 1-up
Jack Tarzy / Jack Teuschl (N) def. Josh Kim / Drew Jeffords (A), 4&3

Singles Matches (Army 5.5, Navy 1.5)
John Heckel Jr. (A) def. Jack Tarzy (N), 1-up
Samuel Kim (A) def. Owen Huntington (N), 2&1
Ben Valdez (N) def. Josh Kim (A), 3&1
Zach Clark (A) def. Noah Nuez (N), 2&1
James Ballato (A) def. Jack Teuschl (N), 6&4
Drew Jeffords (A) def. Danny Auffant (N), 5&4
Luke Lombardo (N) tied Lake Kim (A)

### Go Navy ###