BALTIMORE, Md. – Renewing a local rivalry, the Navy men's soccer team (3-6-7, 0-4-3 PL) came out with a 1-1 draw against Loyola (3-9-2, 2-4-1 PL) on Saturday afternoon at the Ridley Athletic Complex in Baltimore, Md.
 
A scoreless first half gave way to an offensive second stanza, as the 58th-minute score from freshman Nick Gallucci gave the Midshipmen the lead, but a furious push from the Greyhounds afterwards eventually allowed Tyler Flynn to net the tying goals with just under two minutes left in the game.
 
After a slow start that featured Richie Nichols ripping off three shots in the opening 20 minutes, Navy pushed back with freshmen Will Cawlfield and Luke Parker hitting shots off-target at 23' and 26' before senior Tommy Lockhart forced Connor O'Keefe into action in the 27th minute. Trading chances as the first half wore on, Nichols had the best attempt for either side in the opening 45 minutes, ripping a long-range shot that went just wide of the top-left corner with under 30 seconds left in the half.
 
After Eaton's 55th-minute stop on Ryan Andrews, Navy struck first at 58' when sophomore Stephen Nelson corralled a loose ball after a Loyola defender knocked down a clarence into the Greyhounds' end, shuffling a pass over to a crashing Gallucci that allowed the rookie to fire a low shot past O'Keefe from just outside the box.
 
Putting pressure on the Mids' defenders, Loyola saw Charlie Herley head a corner-kick opportunity just left of the cage as well in the 62nd minute. A free kick at 68' then set up Nichols, who ripped a shot towards the right side that senior goalkeeper Robert Eaton had to deflect away, while Parker then cleared the loose ball after Kayin Oladinni almost buried the rebound.
 
Loyola had another chance to even the score at 81' as Jack Endacott finished a cross, but Eaton was right on top of him to swallow the shot. Another scramble in front off a free kick then saw Takawira head the ball just over the crossbar at 85', while the Greyhounds finally found the equalizer with just 1:46 left as Nichols fed a pass over to Flynn, who raced along the outside and then fired a crossing shot between two Navy defenders and past Eaton inside the left post.
 
While both teams created a late rush in the closing minute-plus of the contest, the two sides would end in a draw that had Eaton make five saves and O'Keefe record one stop.
 
Head Coach Tim O'Donohue Comments
"The boys played very well in the first half and Gallucci scored a very good goal early in the second half. I'm disappointed for our players not to close it out. It was an unfortunate giveaway which led to a counter in the final phase of the game, but there were a lot of good performances today despite the result."
 
Match Notes
• Navy is now 6-6-5 in the all-time series with Loyola, extending its unbeaten streak over the Greyhounds to four games.
• Scoring for the second time this campaign, Gallucci is the first Navy freshman with multiple goals in a season since Wyatt Stevens netted four tallies last year.
 
Up Next
Navy will return to Annapolis for its final home game on Oct. 31, hosting Bucknell at 7 p.m.