Setting the Stage
• Opening Draw: Playing its third-consecutive game on the road, Navy (5-3, 1-1 Patriot League) returns to Patriot League action on Friday evening when it makes the trip to Pennsylvania to play Lafayette (5-3, 1-1 Patriot League). Faceoff is slated for 7:30 pm at Fisher Stadium. Navy is led by Joe Amplo, who has put together a 48-36 record in his 7 seasons at the helm of the Mids' program, while Lafayette's Patrick Myers has posted a 35-65 record in 8 seasons as the Leopards' head coach. The contest marks the 28th meeting in a series that dates back to 1926.
• Follow the Action: The game will be streamed on ESPN+ (subscription based) with Luke Meli and Alex Schoen on the call.  The game will also be carried live on 1430 WNAV with Joe Miller on the call. Radio coverage begins at 7:15 pm with the Navy Lacrosse Pregame Show. Live stats will also be available on NavySports.com(.)

Countdown to Faceoff
10  -  Dan Daly (Sr) is one of only 10 goalkeepers in program history to reach 400-career saves. He currently stands 8th on Navy's all-time career saves list with 443 saves, the most by a Navy player since Ryan Kerns 465 save from 2017-20.
9  -  Navy has held Lafayette to 9 or fewer goals in 24 of the 27 games in the series.
8  -  Navy has won at least a share of the Patriot League regular-season title 8 times (2004-05-06-07-08-15-16-18) since 2004.
7  -  Mac Haley (Sr / A) has produced 7 multiple-goal games for the Mids this season, while Alec Gregorek (So / A) as at least 2 goals in all 8 contests
6  -  Patrick Flaherty (So / LSM) produced a career-high 6 caused turnovers in the win over Bucknell 3-7), the 2nd most in caused turnovers in program history and the most since Matt Rees' 6 vs. Air Force on Feb. 6, 2016. As a team, the Mids tied the school record (VMI, 2011) with 18 caused turnovers against the Bison.
5  -  Five of Navy's 2026 opponents are ranked among the USILA's top 20 this week - #9 Penn State (W, 12-11 / 2-21), #12 Johns Hopkins (L, 14-10 / 3-14), #15 Boston U. (L, 15-10 / 2-28), #17 Towson (L, 12-8 / 2-14) and #19 Army (4-11).
4  -  Four players have scored 100 points during the Joe Amplo era, including Mac Haley (Sr / A) who scored his 100th point in Navy's win over VMI (2-17). He is tied for 22nd on Navy's all-time scoring list with 121 points, just 2 points out of the top 20.
3  -  Navy has lost just 3 games to Lafayette (L 15-8, 3-12-2010 / L 9-8, 3-11-2017 / L 9-5, 4-29-2025) in series history and all 3 have been played on the Leopards' home field 
2  -  During the Joe Amplo era, Navy has lost just 2 games when holding its opponent to 9 or fewer goals. The Mids are 31-2 when achieving that feat since 2020. One of those 2 losses was to Lafayette in last year's Patriot League Quarterfinals (L 9-5)
1  -  With a goal and an assist at Johns Hopkins last Saturday, AJ Marsh (Jr / D) now ranks #1 in program history for points scored by a long pole. He has 20 points on 9 goals and 11 assists. Matt Rees previously held the record with 19 points from 2014-17. 

Scouting Lafayette
• Eighth-year Lafayette head coach Patrick Myers has led the Leopards to a 5-3 record this spring, including a 1-1 mark in the Patriot League. 
• Lafayette's 3 losses this season have been by a combined 4 goals (13-12 at Air Force, 9-8 vs. Drexel, 11-9 at Holy Cross).
• After opening the year 2-2, the Leopards have won 3 of their last 4 contests, including handing nationally-ranked Army its 1st loss of the season (10-9). 
• Lafayette is 4-1 at home with its lone loss a 9-8 decision to Drexel.
• Lafayette stands 27th in the country and 5th in the league in scoring offense, averaging 12.25 goals per game. The Leopards have been held to single digits twice this season, both losses (Drexel, Holy Cross).
• Leading the way in the scoring column is Benjamin DiBattista (So / A) who has 29 points on a team-best 25 goals and 4 assists. He is averaging 3.63 points per game and 3.13 goals per game which is the 4th-best mark in the league.
• Five other players have reached double figures, including Jeff Klassen (Fr / A) who has 18 points (10G, 8A) and Nicholas Blalock, who has 17 points on 8 goals and a team-high 9 assists.
• Lafayette's defense has been stingy, allowing 9.25 goals per game which is 16th best nationally and 2nd best in the league. All-Patriot League goalkeeper Joe Doherty (Sr) has been outstanding between the pipes where he owns an 8.33 goals-against average and a 54.8 save percentage, both ranking #2 in the league.
• George Urich (Jr / D) and Noah Blinkoff (Fr / D) lead the team with 13 caused turnovers apiece
• In terms of "special teams" play, Lafayette's extra-man squad has scored just 5 goals on 20 opportunities (25.0). On the other side of the ball, the Leopards' man-down squad has squelched 16 of the opponents' 23 EMOs (69.6).
• Nick Faccone (Jr) has taken the bulk of the faceoffs this spring for Lafayette, winning 98 of 162 draws (60.5). He stands 12th nationally and 2nd in the Patriot League in winning percentage. Meanwhile, he leads the team in ground balls, grabbing a league-best 6.25 per contest.

Navy-Lafayette Series
• Tuesday's contest marks the 28th meeting between the two programs, and the 24th since the Midshipmen joined the Patriot League in 2004. Navy leads the series 24-3.
• Navy owns an 8-3 series advantage in games played in Easton, Pa., winning 4 of the last 5 (2019, W 12-7 / 2021, W 14-10 / 2022, W 9-5 / 2024, W 10-9). Lafayette defeated the Mids in last year's Patriot League Quarterfinals, marking the Leopards 1st win over Navy since March 11, 2017, when Lafayette edged Navy 9-8.
• Navy and Lafayette first met in 1926 with the Mids earning a 23-0 win. The two teams battled one another three times between 1929-31 before the series went on pause. The two programs would not meet again until the Mids joined the Patriot League.
• The Mids won 10 straight against the Leopards before dropping the program's 1st game to Lafayette on March 12, 2010 in Easton. Navy won 7 in a row before falling a 2nd time, again in Easton, by a 9-8 count in 2017. Navy rattled off 7-consecutive wins over Lafayette before the Leopards dealt the visiting Mids a 9-5 loss in Easton, Pa. in the Patriot League Quarterfinals.
• The two programs have met twice in the Patriot League Tournament. The Mids scored an 11-9 win over the Leopards in the 2010 Patriot League Semifinals played in West Point, N.Y. Last year, Lafayette dealt the visiting Mids a 9-5 loss in Easton, Pa.
• Navy has scored double digits in 21 of the 26 games, while the Mids have held Lafayette to single digits 24 times.
• In the 27-game history, the Mids have outscored the Leopards, 328-154.

Navy Picked Third in PL Preseason Poll
• Navy has been picked to finish 3rd in the 2026 Patriot League Preseason Men's Lacrosse Poll. 
• Army, the 2025 Patriot League Regular-Season Champion, secured 7 of the 9 first-place votes and amassed 63 points to top the poll for a third-consecutive year. 
• Boston U., who played in the Patriot League Championship Game a year ago, earned 56 points and the remaining 2 first-place votes to finish 2nd in the balloting. Just 3 points separated the 3rd (Navy, 40), 4th (Loyola, 39) and 5th-place teams (Lafayette, 37), while just a point separated Lehigh (33) and Colgate (32) for 6th and 7th, respectively. Closing out the poll in 8th and 9th were Bucknell (15) and Holy Cross (9), respectively.
• Navy's AJ Marsh (Jr / D) was named the Patriot League Preseason Defensive Player of the Year and Zach Hayashi (Jr / FO) was named the Patriot League Preseason Faceoff Specialist of the Year. Joining Marsh and Hayashi on the preseason all-league team was Jack Ponzio (So / M).    

2026 Patriot League Men's Lacrosse Preseason Poll
1. Army, 63 points (7 first-place votes)
2. Boston U., 56 (2)
3. Navy, 40
4. Loyola, 39
5. Lafayette, 37
6. Lehigh, 33
7. Colgate, 32
8. Bucknell, 15
9. Holy Cross, 9