ANNAPOLIS, Md. - After a historic regular season, the Navy women's basketball team embarks on Monday on a postseason journey that the Mids hope is just as successful and loaded with memorable moments. First up for the top-seeded Midshipmen (21-7) is a Patriot League Tournament Quarterfinal showdown against the eighth-seeded Boston University Terriers (11-19) at Alumni Hall. Winners of both matchups during the regular season, Navy will be cautious of BU as the Terriers played them especially tough in Annapolis in February as it was a one-point game at halftime with just a six-point margin through three quarters before the Mids pulled away a bit for the 57-47 victory. Tip-off for Monday's quarterfinal game is set for 7 p.m. with the winner advancing to the semifinals on Thursday.

Monday's Navy-Boston game will have live stats provided online, as well as be broadcast on the ESPN+ platform. ESPN+ is a subscription-based streaming service that requires patrons to sign-up for monthly or yearly plans prior to tuning into the contest. An audio-only portion of the contests will also be available via WNAV: over the radio waves on 1430 AM, online at WNAV.com or through the iHeart and Audacy platforms.

Navy in the Patriot League Tournament
The Mids are 29-30 all-time in Patriot League Tournament action and have won three league championships (2011-12-13) during the program's 34-year history with the conference ... In its first five years under the guidance of head coach Tim Taylor, Navy is 3-4 as the Mids did not participate in the 2021 tournament due to COVID-19 protocols, but returned in 2022 with a first round home victory over ninth-seeded Colgate and a buzzer-beating upset win at the top-seed Holy Cross. Navy fell in the first round of the 2023 tournament at American, 78-71 before knocking off the Lafayette Leopards in the first round at home, 67-45 in 2024, but later dropping a tight 69-64 battle on the road at Colgate in the quarterfinals ... In the 2025 tournament, Navy was upset at home in a #4-5 matchup by Holy Cross, 66-52 ... Navy is 17-13 all-time in quarterfinal action and 16-5 in tournament games played on their home court ... The Mids and Terriers have never met in the Patriot League Tournament game; Monday will be the first.

Navy versus Boston University
The Mids and Terriers have met 25 times in a series that began on December 30, 2011 at the Fordham Holiday Classic in the Bronx, N.Y.  ... All-time, the series goes slightly to Navy, 14-11 ... The series is tied 6-6 in games played at Case Gym in Boston, while the Mids have an 8-4 advantage in games played in Annapolis ... The two teams started meeting annually once Boston joined the Patriot League for the 2013-14 season ... Over the last ten matchups, BU has a 6-4 advantage, though the Mids completed their first season series sweep since 2018 by going 2-0 over the Terriers in 2025 and again in 2026 to extend their current win streak to four games.
    Last 5 Games
    Jan. 28, 2026 (H): Navy 57 - Boston 47
    Dec. 31, 2025 (A): Navy 77 - Boston 64
    March 5, 2025 (H): Navy 60 - Boston 47
    Jan. 22, 2025 (A): Navy 74 - Boston 64
    Feb. 17, 2024 (H): Boston 69 - Navy 60

Most Recent Navy-Boston Matchup ... January 28, 2026 in Annapolis
With temperatures hovering below the freezing mark outside of Alumni Hall on Wednesday night, both the Navy and Boston University women's basketball teams struggled throughout most of their matchup to heat up any sort of offensive momentum. At the conclusion of 40 minutes of action, a jolt from the Mids' bench, constant defensive pressure and 19 offensive rebounds helped the hosts pull away for a 57-47 victory. After shooting just 25 percent and holding a slim 20-19 lead at halftime, Navy (13-6, 8-1 PL) improved its output in the second half with a 43.2 percent shooting effort to out-score Boston (7-13, 3-6 PL), 37-28.

Individually, Zanai Barnett-Gay did it all for the Mids as she scored 13 points, grabbed eight rebounds, assisted on five baskets and recorded a career-high seven steals in 36 minutes of action. Zoe Mesuch tied her teammate with 13 points to go along with four rebounds and three assists. Kate Samson gave Navy three players in double figures as she registered 11 points on an efficient 5-8 shooting effort.

The action was slow out of the gate as the score crawled out to a 3-3 margin through the initial 4:08 of play. Mary Gibbons doubled Navy's output the next time down the court with a three-pointer from the wing at 5:10. The teams exchanged baskets over the next 90 seconds as the score increased to 8-5 in favor of the Mids. Morgan Demos' second basket of the opening frame put Navy up five at 1:23, though BU answered back on the ensuing possession to close the low-scoring quarter at 10-8.

The visitors drew even 54 seconds into the second period to make it 10-10. From that juncture at 9:06, the Mids caught fire, relatively speaking, with a 7-1 run over the next 2:35 with all of the points coming from their talented freshmen class as Mesuch went back-to-back with a jump shot and three-pointer before Quinn Boettinger concluded the run with an offensive rebound and putback. With the score 17-11, the Terriers fought back on the strength of their imposing center Anete Adler as she individually was responsible for six of the game's next seven points to pull tighten the contest to one point, 18-17 by the 2:19 mark. Two points for each of Mesuch and Adler down the stretch sent the teams to the locker room with the score 20-19.

In the first half, Navy was held back by just a 25.0 percent (8-32) shooting effort and a 14.3 percent (2-14) showing from three-point range, though its defensive pressure forced Boston into 10 turnovers.

The action in the second half continued to plod along as the Terriers slowly moved into the lead 25-23, 3:33 into the third quarter. Mesuch registered the Mids' only basket during this stretch with a three-pointer on the squad's first possession. Faced with a deficit for the first time since the opening minutes of the game, Taylor looked to his bench for a spark and inserted Maren Louridas and Saran Moschella for their first action on Wednesday. After riding out tied scores of 25-25, 27-27 and 29-29 over the next three minutes, the duo's impact was felt over the final third of the period as Navy out-scored BU 8-2 to pull out to a 37-31 lead. Giving the Mids a much-needed infusion of energy, Louridas grabbed two rebounds, scored two points and added an assist, while Moschella helped Navy's cause with two points and two rebounds. More importantly though, the duo changed the physical look of the Mids' lineup and helped to counter the Terriers' post duo of Adler and Anastasiia Semenova.

Quiet through three quarters of play with six points, five rebounds and three steals, Barnett-Gay flashed the dynamic skillset that makes her a frontrunner for the league's player of the year honor in the fourth quarter when her team needed it the most. With the score 37-33, Barnett-Gay sparked Navy with an individual 5-0 run within 46 seconds as she sank a three-pointer off a baseline out-of-bounds play before depositing a second-chance layup off a Boettinger offensive rebound at 8:27. Her strong play translated over the rest of the Mids' lineup as that 5-0 run increased out to 10-0 as a pair of Boettinger free throws at 6:51 made it a 14-point game, 47-33. Boston valiantly tried to keep pace with Navy and cut its deficit down to nine points three times between 5:11 and 2:50, but in each case the Mids had an immediate retort, twice by Samson and the third time by Barnett-Gay. A final layup by Mesuch with 45 seconds remaining iced the victory for the hosts as they extended their win streak to six games with a 57-47 ultimate score.

In Navy's 20-point fourth quarter, Barnett-Gay provided her squad with seven points, three points and four steals in 8:11 of action, while Boettinger crashed the glass with five rebounds and facilitated three baskets via assists. In keeping with her instant-energy role that started in the third quarter, Louridas played 6:22, grabbed two rebounds and was a +5 in the plus-minus statistic.

For the game, Boston out-shot Navy 36.0 percent (18-50) to 34.8 (24-69) from the field, 27.3 percent (3-11) to 18.2 (4-22) from three-point range and 61.5 percent (8-13) to 50.0 (5-10) from the free throw line.

Defensively, Navy forced Boston into 18 turnovers and was credited with nine steals. Barnett-Gay was constantly pestering the Terriers' offense with a career-high seven steals to go along with one blocked shot. In total, Navy blocked five BU shots.

Comparing the Teams

(2025-26 Stats)	Navy	Boston Univ.
Record / League-Only	21-7 / 16-2 PL	11-19 / 6-12 PL
Home / Away Record	12-3 / 9-4	5-10 / 6-9
Points Per Game	69.8 PPG	58.7 PPG
Points Allowed Per Game	59.5 PPG	61.1 PPG
Field Goal Percentage	42.0 %	43.9 %
3-Point Percentage	30.2 %	34.5 %
Free Throw Percentage	69.2 %	66.8 %
Rebounds Per Game	39.1 RPG	33.3 RPG
Assists/Turnovers Per Game	15.3 / 13.3	13.9 / 15.0

Individual Leaders

(2025-26 Stats)	Navy	Boston University
Points Per Game	Zanai Barnett-Gay, 16.5 ppg	Anete Adler, 14.7 ppg
Rebounds Per Game	Z. Barnett-Gay, 8.3 rpg	A. Adler, 6.0 rpg
Assists Per Game	Z. Barnett-Gay 4.1 apg	Bella McLaughlin, 3.2 apg
Field Goal Percentage	Kate Samson, 53.1 %	Anastasiia Semenova, 49.8 %
3-Point Percentage	Zoe Mesuch, 35.6 %	Ines Monteagudo, 44.1 %
Free Throw Percentage	Z. Barnett-Gay, 79.7 %	B. McLaughlin, 66.0 %

Last Time Out -- Wednesday, March 4 versus Loyola
The Navy women's basketball team put an exclamation point on its 2025-26 regular season with an emphatic 72-50 victory over Loyola on Wednesday night. Coming into the contest with 15 league wins, the Mids (21-7, 16-2 PL) clinched sole possession of first place in the program record book with win number 16 on the strength of a dominant 23-6 scoring advantage over the Greyhounds (12-17, 8-10 PL) in the second quarter at Alumni Hall.

With the 2025-26 Patriot League Regular Season Title already attained on Saturday, the Mids came into Wednesday night looking to make history by moving ahead of the 2013-14 team's 15-win mark, while continuing to build momentum for the Patriot League Tournament that starts for the team on Monday with quarterfinal action. Zoe Mesuch made sure of just that with a game-high 21 points on an efficient 8-for-12 shooting mark with three three-pointers and a pair of free throws. Additionally, she had three assists and a steal over 29 minutes of action. Julianna Almeida and Christina Liggio joined Mesuch in double figures as the underclass duo posted lines of 12 and 11 points, respectively.

The action on Wednesday night opened evenly as Navy overcame an early 4-0 deficit to knot the game at 5-5 following a Liggio layup at 6:56 and before Mary Gibbons gave the Mids a short-lived lead on a three-pointer as the Greyhounds quickly fought back to make it 10-10 by the 5:02 mark. The game continued progressing with ties every five points as Loyola once again drew even at 15-15 after a Sydney Bass three-pointer at 3:28. An 8-2 close to the quarter helped the host Midshipmen break out to a 23-17 lead through 10 minutes of play. Mesuch started the run with back-to-back baskets in a matter of 10 seconds as she knocked down a jumper and immediately caused a turnover in the backcourt for an easy layup. Almeida and Zanai Barnett-Gay tallied the final two field goals for Navy in the quarter as the team ended up shooting 58.8 percent (10-17) in the stanza.

That momentum that the Mids built up at the end of the first quarter carried over into the second as they opened with six straight points over their first two possessions as Liggio sank a three-pointer followed up by a 3-for-3 showing at the foul line by Almeida. Ahead 29-17 at 9:14, Navy was able to extend its advantage up to 16 points four minutes later when Gibbons drove the baseline for a layup at the rim to make it 36-20. After a Kimmie Hicks jumper drew Loyola back within 14 the next time down the court a three-pointer by Mesuch, her third of the first half, energized a 10-1 run to halftime. The freshmen duo of Mesuch and Liggio did most of the heavy lifting offensively during this stretch with Mesuch notching five points and Liggio converting all three of her free throws. The final field goal of the half came from Saran Moschella as the junior picked off a pass and went in untouched for a breakaway layup to send the teams to the locker room at 46-23.

While Navy's offense was clicking to the tune of a 50.0 percent (7-14) shooting performance with three three-pointers in the second quarter, the Mids' defense was the ultimate story in the 23-6 period as they held the Greyhounds to just 2-9 shooting with nine caused turnovers and a 16-2 advantage in points off turnovers.

Ahead by 23 coming out to start the second half, Almeida helped Navy slowly creep out to a 26-point lead with a personal 5-2 run over the initial 3:01 of play in the third quarter. Loyola was able to whittle its deficit down to 22 (51-29) following an Amandine Amorich free throw at 3:59. The Mids had an immediate rebuttal to this challenge and scored seven of the next nine points to go up by a game-high 27 points with 1:48 left in the quarter. Once again Mesuch and Liggio were the engineers of the offensive action with the duo netting all seven of Navy's points, including a three-pointer by Liggio to cap the run. Trailing 58-31, Loyola responded with seven unanswered points over the next three possessions to tighten the score to a 20-point margin. A three-point dagger by Maren Louridas with five seconds to go deflated the Greyhounds who had hoped to take that momentum into the final quarter of play.

With the eventual result rarely in doubt, Navy got its entire bench into the contest and cruised in the fourth quarter as Loyola never got closer than 18 (62-44 at 4:46) as the teams went nearly shot-for-shot with the Greyhounds finishing with 12 points in the concluding stanza and the Mids recording 11.

For the game, Navy out-shot Loyola, 47.3 percent (26-55) to 32.7 (17-52) from the field, 37.0 percent (10-27) to 27.3 (3-11) from three-point range and 83.3 percent (10-12) to 59.1 (13-22) from the foul line.

The Greyhounds won the rebounding battle with a 37-34 edge on Wednesday night. Quinn Boettinger led all players as she tied her career-high with eight caroms.

Parking / Shuttle Information (NEW GUIDANCE: March 1 -- LINK)
As a result of current world events, Naval Support Activity Annapolis (NSAA) and the U.S. Naval Academy (USNA) are increasing Force Protection measures. The following restrictions to USNA access are effective immediately, unless otherwise noted, and will remain in effect until further notice:

Gate 1 and the Visitor Control Center (VCC) will close. Gate 8 and the turnstiles will remain open.

General public visitation is suspended beginning 1330 today, Saturday, February 28, 2026.

There will be 100% ID checks. Only those with DoW- or DBIDS-issued ID cards will be permitted to walk or drive through Gate 8.

Visitation related to Naval Academy–sponsored events is still permitted. Those with DoW or DBIDS ID cards will be allowed to walk or drive onto the Naval Academy. All other visitors with tickets or attending events must ride the shuttle bus from the Press Box side of Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium and are required to present a Real ID. Expect increased security screening before boarding the shuttle.

In alignment with NORTHCOM direction, the following additional access restrictions to NSAA / USNA are in effect immediately, and will remain in effect until further notice:

• Trusted Traveler (the ability of a credentialed individual with base access to escort a non-credentialed individual) is immediately suspended.  Example: Lou (CAC holder) wants to drive onboard USNA with his brother Bruce. Bruce has a Real ID drivers license, but does not have a CAC card/DBIDS/Military ID; therefore, Lou cannot drive onto the Yard with Bruce in his car. Bruce cannot come onboard, even though he's a grad.

• Greenbury Point is closed until further notice. The closure applies to access to the fenced East & West access roads, as well as the established trails and the Nature Center. It does NOT apply to guests staying at the Cottages.

Expect & anticipate delays at Gate 8, along with increased security presence.