ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The #5/5 Navy women's lacrosse team (5-0) travels to Tampa, Fla. for a nonconference game against South Florida (4-1) at Corbett Stadium at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 7. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and live stats will be available.
 
All-Time Series
The game between Navy and South Florida will mark the first meeting between the two teams. The Midshipmen are 3-0 against current members of the American Conference, posting a 2-0 mark against East Carolina and a 1-0 record against Old Dominion.
 
The game will mark the third head-to-head contest between Navy and USF during the 2025-26 school year. The Midshipmen posted a 41-38 gridiron victory over the Bulls on Nov. 15, 2025. South Florida claimed an 86-74 win over Navy women's basketball on the hardwood.
 
Navy has two players on its roster – Julia Frosh (Pensacola) and Ava Yovino (Parkland) – from the Sunshine State, while South Florida has six players – Grace Brukiewa (Woodbine), Natalie Eastwood (Ellicott City), Avery Graham (Olney), Natalie Kelly (Bel Air), Morgan Perry (Bel Air), and Kennedy Ziegler (Hampstead) – from Maryland.
 
Michael Kelly was named the President of the Naval Academy Athletic Association and Director of Athletics at the Naval Academy on June 4, 2025. Kelly came to the Naval Academy from the University of South Florida where he was the Vice President for Athletics for seven years. Additionally, Kris Pierce joined the Navy Athletics staff in February in the newly-created position of senior deputy athletic director and chief of staff. Pierce previously served as deputy athletic director, chief operating officer and senior woman administrator at South Florida.
 
Tewaaraton Award Watch List
The Tewaaraton Award announced first-round additions to its men's and women's watch lists and Navy senior midfielder Ava Yovino was added to the list. The lists include the top players across all three divisions of NCAA lacrosse.
 
Yovino joins teammates Alyssa Chung and Mikayla Williams who were named to the initial watch list on Feb. 10. This is the third time that Yovino has appeared on the Tewaaraton Award Watch List. She earned a spot on the team as a freshman in 2023, while she was on the initial watch list prior to the 2024 season.
 
National Rankings
Following the Midshipmen's 14-11 upset victory over then-#7 Florida, the Navy women's lacrosse team jumped to #5 in all three national polls – the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) Division I Coaches Poll, the Inside Lacrosse KANE Women's Division I Media Poll, and the USA Lacrosse poll. The #5 ranking is the highest in-season ranking in program history.
 
Prior to their current ranking of fifth, the Midshipmen's highest IWLCA ranking – sixth – came in the final polls of the 2017 and 2018 seasons. Fifth is the highest in-season ranking for the Mids according to Inside Lacrosse. Navy finished the 2017 season in fourth in the final ILWomen poll after the Midshipmen's Final Four run.
 
The Midshipmen have been ranked in the top 10 according to the IWLCA 11 times, including the first weekly poll of the season (Feb. 9, 2026), which was the first time in the top 10 since the final poll of the 2018 season (ranked 6th on May 29, 2018).
 
Scouting the Midshipmen
The Navy women's lacrosse team enters the weekend 5-0 on the young season.
 
The Mids are fresh off of a 14-11 victory over #7 Florida last weekend at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. The win tied for the second-highest ranked opponent that the Midshipmen have defeated in school history.
 
The Mids also beat #7 Penn in 2017 and later defeated #2 North Carolina to advance to the NCAA Women's Lacrosse Championship weekend.
 
The win over #7 Florida gives Navy a pair of victories over top 10 opponents, after the Midshipmen opened the season with a 12-10 win over #10 Virginia. It is the second time in program history that the Mids have defeated multiple top-10 opponents in the same season and first time since the 2017 Final Four run.
 
As a team, the Midshipmen have tallied 73 goals with 41 assists, while picking up 88 ground balls, winning 71 draw controls, and causing 41 turnovers.
 
Entering the weekend, Alyssa Chung, Ava Yovino, and Taylor Miles lead the team. Chung paces the team with 24 points on a team-high 18 goals with six assists. Yovino is one point back with 23 points on 10 goals and a team-best 13 assists. Miles has notched 22 points on 12 goals and 10 assists.
 
Emma Kennedy and Mikayla Williams round out the Midshipmen's top five. Kennedy has 11 points on nine goals and two assists, while Williams is one point back with 10 on eight goals and a pair of helpers.
 
Maggie DeFabio and Anna Gotterup have seven points apiece. DeFabio has six goals and an assist for her seven points, while Gotterup seven points on two goals and five assists. Chloe Brown is one point behind with six points thanks to five goals and a helper. Caroline Gage, Grace Mitchell, and Bella Paradiso have one goal apiece for one point each, while Rowan Kimmel has a point on an assist.
 
Defensively, the Midshipmen have held their opponents to 8.40 goals per game. The Navy defense has held three opponents – #10 Virginia, Villanova, and Delaware – scoreless for one quarter. The Midshipmen held the Cavaliers and Wildcats without a goal in the second quarter, while keeping the Fightin' Blue Hens out of the net in the third period. The Mids were able to outscore their opponents, 17-0, during those three quarters.
 
The Mids have caused 41 of their opponents' 68 turnovers (60.3 percent). Felicia Giglio leads the team with seven caused turnovers, while Yovino follows with six. Chung, Gage, and Jalin Jenkins have four takeaways apiece with Kennedy and DeFabio adding three each.
 
Yovino paces the team with 12 ground balls, while Giglio and DeFabio follow with 10 apiece. Gage, Jenkins, Miles, Landen Cain, and Jaclyn Johns each have six.
 
Giglio has played and started each game for Navy in the cage, working 288:35 minutes of action between the posts. The junior goalie has 36 of the Mids' 39 saves on the year with an 8.52 goals against average.
 
Freshman goalkeeper Angelina Price saw her first collegiate action against Villanova, while also taking some reps against High Point. The rookie has posted a clean sheet with three saves in just under 10 minutes of action (9:55). Sophomore Lila Stachowski saw her first collegiate action against HPU working the final 90 seconds at goal in the Mids' 14-6 victory.
 
In the circle, Maura Murphy boasts a team-high 32 draw wins. The senior notched her first double-digit draw performance against High Point, finishing with a game-high 14 draw wins. Yovino follows with 18 draws, while Kennedy adds 10 draw wins.
 
Scouting the Opposition
The Bulls improved to 4-1 overall following Sunday's 13-10 win over Brown at Corbett Stadium. South Florida used a dominant second quarter and a decisive fourth-quarter push to secure the victory, including a 3-0 scoring run in the final quarter to close the game.
 
Saturday's matchup will serve as the program's Salute to Service Game, honoring members of the military and their contributions.
 
South Florida enters Saturday with a 3-1 record at Corbett Stadium this season, continuing a stretch of strong home performances.
 
The Bulls have recorded double-digit goals in every game this season, showcasing the team's depth across the attacking unit. USF has three players with double-digit goals in Ava Uphues (17 goals), Sofia Chepenik (16), and Elise Grissett (13). Maggie Newton leads the team with 15 assists.
 
Natalie Eastwood has played and started all five games at goal for the Bulls with 31 goals allowed and 20 saves for a 9.79 goals against average. Hailey Darko has also logged time in all five games, allowing 14 goals and notching 10 stops for a 7.64 GAA.
 
In the circle, Kali Cleary leads the team with 37 of the team's 91 draw wins.
 
Athletes of the Week
The Patriot League announced its weekly women's lacrosse accolades and Navy student-athletes Alyssa Chung, Ava Yovino, and Felicia Giglio were each recognized, following the Mids' 14-11 upset victory over #7 Florida on Saturday. Chung earned Attacker of the Week honors, while Yovino was tabbed Midfielder of the Week. For the third straight week, Giglio was named Goalkeeper of the Week.
 
The trio helped lead Navy to 14-11 upset victory over #7 Florida. The win tied for the second-highest ranked opponent that the Midshipmen have defeated in school history. Additionally, the win over #7 Florida gave Navy a pair of victories over top 10 opponents, after the Midshipmen opened the season with a 12-10 win over #10 Virginia. It is the second time in program history that the Mids have defeated multiple top-10 opponents in the same season and first time since the 2017 Final Four run.
 
Additionally, Yovino was tabbed the IWLCA National Division I Offensive Player of the Week for the second time this season. Earlier in the year, she earned the IWLCA Offensive Player of the Week honor for her efforts during the Midshipmen's upset win at #10 Virginia. Also, the senior won a tightly contested ILWomen Instagram Story fan vote en route to AXIA Time Women's DI Player of Week honors.
 
Up Next
Following the game, Navy starts a three-game homestand on Tuesday, March 10 as the Midshipmen play host to Jacksonville at 2:00 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and WNAV with live stats available throughout the game.