ANNAPOLIS, Md. —  Despite outscoring Loyola 9-8 over the final 3 quarters of play, it was a 4-1 deficit in the opening frame the Navy men's lacrosse team (7-6, 4-3 Patriot League) was never able to overcome as the Greyhounds (7-6, 5-2 PL) scored a 12-10 victory over the Mids Friday evening at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.

"Congrats to Loyola, they outplayed us tonight," said fifth-year Navy head coach Joe Amplo. "They played really well and deserved to win. I didn't feel like we deserved to win throughout the game. They were really sharp early on offense and I felt like we were chasing the whole night. I think we got it to one at one point and if we can tie it there, maybe it starts to shift. I thought going to zone it stopped them a little bit and allowed us to rest.

"But going down early, it seems to be the thing we do right now (Navy has trailed after the first quarter in 7 of its 13 games, including 3 of the last 4). That first quarter seems to be the thing we've got to figure out, same thing last week. After 4-1, it's a heck'uva lacrosse game. Same thing last week after going down to those guys up there it was a heck of a lacrosse game. That's what I'm proud of with these guys is that we've got a heart here. We've got guys who care and want to win and are as tough as nails, but we have to play better if we want to beat a team like Loyola on this stage. It just comes down to that."

Just 56 seconds into the contest, Loyola's Matthew Minicus (So / A) slipped past Navy co-captain Jackson Bonitz (Sr / D / Shrewsbury, Pa.) and used a pass from Joey Kamish (Gr / A) to score the game's first goal. Navy evened the game three minutes later when Jon Jarosz (Sr / A / Gambrills, Md.) fired in his first of a team-best 4 goals on the evening.

Dylan Binney (Sr / M) sent a bouncer past Navy goalkeeper Dan Daly (So / Wayne, N.J.) from 8 yards out, breaking the tie and sparking a 3-0 run to give the Greyhounds a 4-1 lead after the opening period.

The Mids fought their way back into the game, scoring 4 of the next 5 goals, including back-to-back strikes by seniors Xavier Arline (A / Wading River, N.Y.) and Jackson Peters (DM / Darien, Conn.) to get to within one. Momentum would shift in Loyola's direction going into the half, however, as Binney perfectly placed his low-to-high shot over Daly's shoulder with just 12.4 seconds remaining in the second quarter to give the Greyhounds a 7-5 advantage at the half.

Navy scored less than three minutes into the second half to cut the deficit to just one as Paul Garza (So / M / Frederick, Md.) weaved his way through a triple team and sank a one-handed scoop shot past Loyola's Luke Staudt (Sr / GK).

The Greyhounds once again had an answer and scored 4 of the next 5 goals to push their lead back to 4 at 11-7.

Navy got a much-needed goal with just 2.9 ticks remaining in the quarter when Jarosz found the back of the net.

The Greyhounds would take a 12-8 lead less than 2 minutes into the final quarter when Mustang Sally (Gr / DM) found Evan James (Gr / M) in transition for his third goal of the evening. While Navy's defense stepped up and held Loyola scoreless over the final 13 minutes, the Mids would get no closer than two.

Jarosz led the way with his second-consecutive four-goal game for the Mids, as he was 1 of 7 players to score for Navy.

"The plan was to put the ball in 6's (Jarosz) stick," added Amplo. "He had a heck of a night. If you put the ball in 6's stick, then the first midfield isn't going to touch the ball as much. He was unguardable at times. I told him walking out of the locker room, I said what you have done, you're inspiring other players. Truly he is. I'm really proud of him."

Daly led a defensive effort for the Mids with 12 saves, while Bonitz was responsible for 3 of Navy's 8 caused turnovers. In doing so, Bonitz moved past Pat Kiernan (74 / 2011-14) for second on Navy's all-time career saves list with 76 and moved into a tie for fourth on the Mids' single-season caused turnovers list with 26 this spring. Bonitz also picked up 5 ground balls to move into 14th on Navy's career list (150).

Zach Hayashi (Fr / FO / North Potomac, Md.) won 14 of the 26 draws and broke Navy's freshman record for faceoff wins which was set by Brady Dove in 2014 with 163. Hayashi, who has 165 wins this spring, stands fourth on the Mids' overall single-season wins list and trails record holder Anthony Ghobriel by 20 (185 / 2023). Hayashi also moved into a tie for 10th on the Mids' single-season ground balls leader board with 78, 22 behind record holder Brady Dove (2017).

Remarkably, all 12 of Loyola's goals were scored by starters, including James and Adam Poitras (Gr / M) who had 3 goals and 4 points piece. Defensively, Staudt finished with 12 saves, 9 of which he recorded in the first (4) and fourth (5) quarters. Rookie faceoff specialist Carson Hall won 11 of the 25 draws he took, while Eric Pacheco (Gr) was 1 for 1.

A pivotal game for both programs, Navy and Loyola came into the contest embroiled in a six-way tie for first place in the Patriot League standings and vying for a spot in the six-team Patriot League Tournament in two weeks. The Greyhounds assured itself a place in the tournament with its win against the Mids, while Navy, too, will be in the tournament, getting a little help Friday evening from archrival Army, who dealt Bucknell its fifth loss of the season and eliminated the Bison from the tournament. Seeding will likely be unknown until the conclusion of next Friday's contests, but what is known now are the six teams who will compete for a league title - Army (5-2), Loyola (5-2), Boston U. (4-2 / play at Lehigh tomorrow), Colgate (4-2 / play at Holy Cross tomorrow), Lehigh (4-2 / play Boston U. tomorrow) and Navy (4-3).

Navy will play its regular-season finale next Friday when it plays host to Bucknell (4-9, 2-5 PL). Faceoff is slated for 7:00 pm at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in what will be the final regular-season home game for Navy's 17 seniors. The game will be streamed live on ESPN+ with Pete Medhurst and Joe Miller on the call. Additionally, WNAV 1430 AM will carry the game live.


### Go Navy ###