BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Led by senior goalkeeper Pierce Holbrook recording a season-high nine saves and gaining valuable ground in the Patriot League standings, the Navy men's soccer team (4-6-4, 3-3-1 PL) posted a 1-0 shutout victory over Lehigh (5-8-3, 3-3-1 PL) on Saturday evening at the Ulrich Sports Complex in Bethlehem, Pa.
 
Following a highlight-reel goal from junior A.J. Schuetz in the opening minutes, Holbrook and the Midshipmen's backline proved stout for the final 85 minutes, as Navy held off a pressing Mountain Hawk attack that generated 19 shots to pick up the team's first clean sheet in league play this season.
 
On the first true chance of the contest for either side, Navy notched the game's lone tally in the sixth minute when it regained possession of a loose ball near the Lehigh goal-line and a pass was shoveled to senior Noah Ward in the corner. Ward then crossed a ball into the box, where Schuetz dove and headed it in past Blake Koski's near side.
 
The Mids continued to pressure right after the goal with two more shots that did not reach Koski before the Mountain Hawks turned the tide a bit, as Holbrook dove to stop Perry Kingson at 22' after a trio of off-target chances and another Holbrook save came at 25' on Yusef Gueye, but Schuetz countered seconds later with a shot that forced Koski to turn it away. Holbrook then fell on another long Gueye shot at 32'and Koski stopped Schuetz in the 37th minute to continue the early goalkeeper battle, with Holbrook picking up another first-half save at 45' when a turnover led to Giacomo Zizza's kick from outside the box.
 
Junior Andrew Schug tried to extend Navy's lead at 51' with a pair of chances near the goal box, but the Lehigh defense blocked the first chance and the Mountain Hawks forced Schug to a tough angle on his second chance a minute later. Lehigh finally started to turn it up offensively after that, as Holbrook had to save chances from Sam Davis at 58' and Aiden Gonzalez at 61' to keep the lead intact.
 
Holbrook held strong the final 25 minutes as the Mountain Hawks' attack intensified, with great positioning helping him stop Kingson's one-timer in the 66th minute and a diving save on Beckett Wenger at 78' being the highlight of the game, while a leap to send Zizza's shot over the cage at 86' preserved the shutout for the Navy backstop.
 
Wrapping up with his third clean sheet of the season, Holbrook also picked up his third game of the campaign with seven-or-more saves, while Koski made three saves on the other end.
 
Coach Tim O'Donohue Post-Game Comments
"Tonight was a strong, gutsy performance from the guys on the road. We got off to a good start and scored the early goal because of it. We also generated some more chances as the game wore on and we could have gone up 2-0 multiple times. Pierce and our defense then settled back and played really well for the last 20 minutes to bring home the win. We're right back in the mix for the Patriot League and now we get two games at home with an opportunity to accomplish what's in front of us."
 
Match Notes
• Navy is now 35-23-9 in the all-time series with Lehigh, extending its unbeaten streak against the Mountain Hawks to four games.
• The Mids are now 6-0-3 when Schuetz records a point in his career.
• Navy is also 3-0-5 in games where Ward records a point for his career.
• Ward has a three-game point streak against the Mountain Hawks dating back to 2022.
• Now with 18 career shutouts, Holbrook is two away from matching the Navy record since 1983 (20 clean sheets by Brian Steckroth, 1998-2001)
 
Up Next
Navy hosts Boston University on Friday, Nov. 1, with the 7 p.m. contest set to serve as Senior Night for the Mids.