ANNAPOLIS, Md. – In front of a lively crowd, the Navy women's soccer team (2-0-0) stormed out to an early lead once again to propel the Midshipmen to a 2-0 home-opening victory over Temple (1-1-0) on Sunday afternoon at the Glenn Warner Soccer Facility.
 
With Marlee Heaven scoring in the opening 15 minutes for the second-straight contest to give Navy an early edge and Madison Whitworth adding her first goal of the campaign in the second half, the Mids helped out goalkeeper Natasha Stramrood by limiting the visiting Owls to just two shots on goal, including none on target in the final 28 minutes while the Mids were down a player.
 
Coming out on the attack for the second-straight match, Navy tried to take a quick lead when Kayana Adlam and Lucy Gaines put back-to-back shots on net at 7', but Temple's Tamsin Bynoe stopped both chances to keep the contest scoreless.
 
Navy did not relent, as Chiara Cosenza corralled an Owl clear attempt in the 15th minute and tapped a pass up to Marlee Heaven, who juked past one Temple defender before kicking it past a diving Bynoe to the right post for the game's opening tally.

Stramrood kept the Mids in front by scooping up a pair of long-range shots from Rylie Wilpolt at 36' and Teagan Harkins at 37', while Emily Clay tried to extend the lead in the 42nd minute, forcing another diving Bynoe save to wrap up the first half.
 
Pressing on offense to open the second half as well, Navy found two more chances denied by Bynoe, stopping Cosenza at 48' and Jessica Black at 52'. Facing a player-down situation when Jordan Townsend received her second yellow card of the day at 63' and was ejected from the contest, the Mids thwarted a pair of Temple corner kicks to withstand the Owls' push.
 
Looking to extend the lead despite being down a player, Whitworth picked up a clearing kick from Stramrood in the 71st minute and raced past the Temple backline, finishing with a low shot to the left post away from the outstretched Bynoe. With the two-goal cushion secured, Navy continued to keep Stramrood clean and forced Temple's two shots over the final 20 minutes off-target, giving the Mids their first 2-0 start to a season since 2009.
 
Head Coach Carin Gabarra Remarks
"It was great to finally get a chance to play at home and in front of our fans. We were ecstatic to get the overwhelming support today from the Annapolis community, Superintendent Borgschulte and the Academy leadership, our AD Michael Kelly and the athletic administration, as well as the Brigade of Midshipmen. We wanted to show them Navy Soccer and what our team is capable of, and I thought we accomplished that. Game-wise, it was another strong showing from our depth and a great defensive effort to back up Natasha Stramrood in net, with several players stepping into roles and positions they haven't played many minutes in. We played well against a tough team, and I was impressed especially in how we defended against their long-ball style of play. That depth continued to shine when we went a player down, as we were able to add to our lead. The team showed a mentality in that situation , so it was positive to see going forward. Also, credit to Marlee Heaven for her goal to establish the lead, and it was great to see Madison Whitworth take her opportunity and run with it to give us the two-goal advantage."
 
Match Notes
• Navy moved to 2-1-1 in the all-time series with Temple.
• The Mids have now won five-straight home openers, dating back to the 2021 season.
• The back-to-back wins marks Navy's first 2-0 start since a four-game winning streak to open the 2009 season.
• The five goals scored for Navy over the opening two games is the most for the Mids over their first two contests since a seven-goal output in 2013's opening two matches.
• Sunday marked Heaven's 13th career goal and the second career tally for Whitworth.
• Heaven has now scored in three-straight home openers for the Mids.
• Heaven's two-game scoring streak marks the second of her career, matching a three-goal, two-game stretch last season from Sept. 8-12.
• Sunday's clean sheet was Stramrood's fourth career shutout.
• Stramrood's assist on Whitworth's goal marked the goalkeeper's first collegiate point.
 
Up Next
Navy continues the homestand on Thursday evening with a 5 p.m. kick against Wofford.