ANNAPOLIS, Md. – In an early season battle of the undefeated, the Navy men's rugby team (4-0, 2-0) squares off against Army (3-0, 2-0) in the second annual Star Match on Saturday at the Prusmack Rugby Center. The Star Match is part of the Army-Navy Star Series presented by USAA.
The match will kickoff at 2 p.m. and can be streamed for free on The Rugby Network with the links provided on navysports.com.
"Obviously this is a big week, but our approach remains the same each week. We know we will always get the best version of Army so we are expecting a physical and confrontational battle," remarked director of rugby Gavin Hickie. "We want to see as many of our Navy alums, families and friends at the Prusmack Rugby Center this Saturday. We hope to have a large and energetic crowd, supporting our Midshipmen."
Student-Athlete Spotlight: Michael Kalalau
Senior prop Michael Kalalau was this week's Student-Athlete Spotlight presented by Northrop Grumman. VIDEO.
Navy Notes
· Navy improved to 4-0 in last week's 35-10 victory over Penn State. The Mids have outscored Rugby Easy divisional opponents, 76-33, this season averaging 38 points per match while allowing 16.5 per match.
· With the victory over Penn State, the Midshipmen extends their Rugby East divisional winning streak to 18-consecutive victories and are 18-0 in all-time conference play.
· Hickie looks for his 40th-career victory as he boasts a 39-2 record.
· A total of 14 different Mids have scored a try this season. Sophomore center Andrew Baublitz leads the team with four tries, the Glenn Burnie, Md., native scored a pair of tries in last week's victory over Penn State.
· Junior fly half Roanin Krieger leads the team in total points with 47 points. Working as the primary kicker, Krieger scored on 10 conversion kicks and nine penalty kicks.
· Krieger is two points shy from 400 career points. The Placerville, Calif., 398 career points is the most in program history. He registered 116 conversion kicks, 36 penalty kicks and 14 tries in his career.
· Michael Strehle recorded his first-career try in last Saturday's victory against the Nittany Lions.
· Navy had a pair of double-digit tacklers in last week victory, sophomore Ian Bullock led with 12 and junior Austin Taylor followed with 10.
Scouting Army
· Led by ninth-year head coach Matt Sherman, the Black Knights are off to a 3-0 start for the fourth time in the last five seasons.
· Army is 2-0 in conference play with victories over Mary Washington (27-17) and Southern Virginia (48-7) in their most recent victory. Saturday's match will be the Black Knights first divisional match of the season.
· With the bonus point victory over Southern Virginia, Army's nine total points is best for second in the Rugby East, one-point shy of Navy (10).
· Six different Black Knights have reached the try zone in Rugby East competition this season. Howie Heller enters the matchup as Army's leading scorer with 26 total points (one try, six conversion kicks and three penalty kicks).
Series History vs. Army
· Saturday's match will be the fifth all-time meeting between the two programs and the second star match. Navy holds the advantage with a perfect 4-0 record.
· In the most recent outing in West Point, N.Y., the Mids escaped with a victory in the closing seconds off the foot of Roanin Krieger, 23-21, in the thrilling inaugural star match.
All-Time Series Matchups vs. Army
Nov. 05, 2022 (H): Navy 27 – Army 14
March 24, 2023 (A): Navy 34 – Army 26
April 15, 2023 (H): Navy 30 – Army 6
Nov. 11, 2023 (A): Navy 23 – Army 21
Notes for Traveling Fans
· There is no admission charge for rugby matches at the Prusmack Rugby.
· Spectator parking is available in the lots on the north side of the Brigade Sports Complex (64 Greenbury Point Road, Annapolis, MD 21402). Overflow parking is available in the open space on the west side of the facility.
· Alcohol consumption is prohibited at the Prusmack Rugby Center and surrounding parking areas.
