EASTON, Pa. – The Navy women's soccer team completed its 2024 regular season on Wednesday night with a road showdown at Lafayette. Fighting for a spot in the upcoming league postseason tournament, the Mids (9-9-2, 3-4-2 PL) and Leopards (5-6-4, 2-3-4 PL) battled for 90 minutes and left it all out on the pitch at Oaks Stadium, though neither team was able to break through onto the scoreboard as the game went final with a 0-0 draw.

After the conclusion of all of Wednesday night's action across the conference, Navy's tie allowed them to garner the six-seed in the 2024 Patriot League Tournament, while Lafayette was one spot and one point shy of extending its season as the Leopards finished the campaign in seventh place.

Natasha Stramrood (Fr., Cypress, Texas) led Navy's effort on Wednesday night as the freshman goalkeeper made five saves. The Mids' defense was also bolstered by three of its starting backs playing all 90 minutes: Jordan Townsend (Jr., Marriottsville, Md.), Emma Romano (Jr., Syosset, N.Y.) and Tatum Kelly (Sr., Pinehurst, N.C.). Additionally, freshman wing back Kayana Adlam (Orlando, Fla.) fought her way back onto the pitch to play 70 minutes after leaving in the first minute to be checked out for an injury.

"That was an extremely tough game," remarked head coach Carin Gabarra. "That was a hard-earned draw on the road against a team that was desperate for a win to get into the tournament. Everyone is on their last legs, but we left everything out there tonight. We defended with intensity throughout all 90 minutes; our back four and goalkeeper were rock solid."

The action was slow to form in the offense end of the field for both teams, though Lafayette was able to mount the first shot of the game in the third minute and later the first shot on goal in the 12th minute when Heather Plowright tested Stramrood to the near post.

Twenty minutes in, Navy had yet to record a shot, though it had a pair of corner kick opportunities and three more free kick restarts in the attacking third. The visitors' third corner kick chance resulted in a shot on goal as Amanda Graziano (Sr., Middlebury, Conn.) struck an in-swinging attempt that forced the Leopards' goalkeeper Catherine Apker into action in the 22nd minute.

After three Lafayette shots missed off target over the next 15 minutes, the final seven minutes of the half saw both teams earn looks at the goal with Navy's Isabella Romano (Jr., Syosset, N.Y.) striking a shot on frame in the 38th minute before Sofia Ruggiero hit a low curling shot towards the corner of the net that saw Stramrood dive low to her right in the 43rd minute.

Coming out of the locker room knotted at 0-0, the Leopards aimed to break the tie first as April McDonald launched a high bending shot towards the back post only to have Stramrood leap up and snag it.

Navy controlled the majority of the high-percentage looks over the next 20 minutes as Alexa Riddle (Sr., Tomball, Texas) asserted herself all over the pitch. In the 52nd minute, she forced a turnover near midfield and immediately played Graziano into space. After a few dribbles, Graziano ripped a lengthy shot that sailed just over the crossbar. A little over seven minutes later, Riddle juked a defender near the top of the 18 and took a shot that had eyes for the lower near corner, though Apker denied it for her third save of the game.

The Mids' loudest scoring chance came in the 66th minute when Hannah Mulholland (So., Chandler, Ariz.) dribbled towards the box and unleashed a howitzer that whizzed past Apker, but directly into the crossbar to keep it a 0-0 game.

That would be Navy's final shot of the game as their focus moved squarely to its defense and keeping Lafayette off the scoreboard late. The Mids' backline kept a tight shape and only allowed three shots over the last 15 minutes of regulation. After their initial shot by Gretchen Waechter missed wide left, the Leopards tested Stramrood twice during this span, though the freshman goalkeeper easily handled McDonald's shot in the 77th minute before she showcased her athleticism in the 83rd minute with a springy dive to her right to snag a McDonald header attempt.

For the game, Lafayette out-shot Navy 13-6 with a 5-3 advantage in shots on goal. The host team also held an edge in corner kicks, 7-5 on Wednesday night.

"We're all happy to extend on our season and give our seniors the chance to play in one more Patriot League Tournament. We've fought so hard all year to earn this opportunity," said Gabarra in closing. "We're going to have to be this strong defensively moving forward into the playoffs."

The Mids will continue their season with action in the quarterfinals of the 2024 Patriot League Tournament. Seeded sixth, Navy will head out on the road with a matchup at the three-seed Army. Kick-off at the Black Knight's Malek Stadium is set for 1 p.m. on Sunday afternoon.

Patriot League Final Standings
  1. Bucknell (7-2; 21 pts)
  2. Boston Uni. (5-0-4; 19 pts)
  3. Army (5-3-1; 16 pts)
  t4. Loyola (3-3-3; 12 pts) 
  t4. Colgate (3-3-3; 12 pts)
  6. Navy (3-4-2; 11 pts)
  7. Lafayette (2-3-4; 10 pts)
  8. American (2-5-2; 8 pts)
  9. Holy Cross (2-5-2; 8 pts)
  10. Lehigh (2-6-1; 7 pts)