EMMITSBURG, Md. – The second-ranked Navy men's rugby team (13-1) recorded a 27-8 victory over seventh-ranked Mount St. Mary's (7-5) Saturday afternoon in Emmitsburg, Md., in a battle between two of the top-10 teams in the country.

"We had a solid performance against a tough opponent today. Our set piece was very effective, along with Roanin Krieger's kicking," remarked Director of Rugby Gavin Hickie. "Our defense was another strong point today as it held Mount St. Mary's to under 10 points for the second time this season. We are happy to come away with a hard-fought victory."

The Mount St. Mary's offense controlled the opening eight minutes of the match and eventually scored the first try 7:29 into the game. The Mount drove into Navy's five-meter zone and displayed efficient passing to the wings to find the corner of the try zone for an early 5-0 lead.

On the ensuing kickoff, the Navy defense pinned the Mountaineers deep in their own side of the field and forced them to clear kick. The Mids gained possession and went on their first solid drive of the game, which took them into the Mount St. Mary's 22-meter zone.

A Mountaineers penalty in the 12th-minute allowed Krieger to drill his third penalty kick this spring to narrow the deficit to 5-3.

Krieger and the Midshipmen soon benefited from an offside penalty by Mount St. Mary's with a second penalty kick opportunity. Krieger's successful kick gave Navy its first lead of the match, 6-5.

Sophomore flanker Aidan Gerber registered Navy's first try of the match in the 29th-minute to extend the lead to 13-5. The try came after Navy first pinned The Mount deep in their try zone and then had a solid defensive play which prevented a clear attempt and forced a turnover, allowing Gerber to slam in his second score this spring.

Neither team was able to generate much offense for the remainder of the half as the Mids went into halftime with the eight-point lead.

After nearly 28 minutes consisting of the teams exchanging possessions to begin the second half, The Mount capitalized off a Navy penalty and yellow card for a penalty kick to bring them to within five points, 13-8.

Despite the Mids being a man down for the remainder of the match, they still finished strong with tries from first junior Austin Taylor and then senior co-captain William Webb.

Taylor ran in his second try this spring in the 72nd-minute after Navy was less than five meters from the Mount St. Mary's try zone. Taylor executed the pick-and-go to quickly punch in the Mids' second try of the match which extended the lead to 20-8.

Six minutes later, Webb scored his first try of the spring in the 78th-minute to close out the scoring in Navy's victory. Webb's try was a full-team effort as the Mids won the lineout and mauled their way over five meters for the score.

Navy will finish the spring regular season on March 22 when they travel to Fredericksburg, Va., to take on 13th-ranked Mary Washington. Kickoff is set for noon.

Box Score
No. 2 Navy 27, No. 7 Mount St. Mary's 8
First Half
7:29 – Try – Mount St. Mary's (0-5)

11:30 – Penalty Kick – Navy – Roanin Krieger (3-5)

19:09 – Penalty Kick – Navy – Roanin Krieger (6-5)

28:25 – Try – Navy – Aidan Gerber (11-5)
Conversion kick – Roanin Krieger (13-5)

Second Half
67:26 – Penalty kick – Mount St. Mary's (13-8)

71:21 – Try – Navy – Austin Taylor (18-8)
Conversion kick – Roanin Krieger (20-8)

77:54 – Try – Navy – William Webb (25-8)
Conversion kick – Roanin Krieger (27-8)