April 2, 2008

•Navy-Maryland Men's Lacrosse Game Notes
Navy Stats | Maryland Stats

Game 11: Navy at Maryland
Friday, April 4 • 8:00 pm • College Park, Md. • Byrd Stadium

Television: ESPNU, WMAR-TV (Ch. 2-Baltimore) Scott Garceau (play by play), Quint Kessenich (analyst)

Radio/Internet:
Listen: 1430 WNAV, 1050 WFED (Pete Medhurst)
Listen: Navy All-Access on www.NavySports.com

Live Stats: Gametracker on www.NavySports.com

Game Preview
• After having its six-game winning streak cut short by the No. 4 Georgetown Hoyas last Saturday, ninth-ranked Navy (8-2, 5-0 Patriot League) will travel to College Park to face No. 3 Maryland (7-2, 2-1 ACC) on Friday ... faceoff is slated for 8:00 pm at Byrd Stadium.
• Friday's contest will be televised live on ESPNU and locally on WMAR-TV (Ch. 2-Baltimore) ... WMAR-TV sports anchor Scott Garceau (play by play) and former Johns Hopkins All-American goalkeeper and two-time ('88, '89) Kelly Award winner Quint Kessenich (analyst) will call the action.
• The Voice of Navy Lacrosse Pete Medhurst will make the call live on 1430 WNAV, as well as 1050 WFED.
• Additionally, fans can log onto www.NavySports.com where they can follow the game for free via Gametracker.
• Navy outscored Georgetown 7-4 in the second half, including two goals each by Gregory Clement, Basil Daratsos and Patrick Moran, but it was Georgetown redshirt freshman Ricky Mirabito who scored 2:18 into overtime to lead the fourth-ranked Hoyas to an 11-10 win over the Mids ... it's just the sixth time in the last 40 games that an opponent has put up double figures against Navy.
• Maryland is coming off an impressive 13-7 win over No. 1-ranked Virginia last Saturday ... rookie attack Travis Reed and redshirt junior Jeff Reynolds helped propel the Terps as each turned in hat tricks ... junior keeper Jason Carter, meanwhile, made 15 stops in goal.

Taking the Field in ...
10 • Senior attack Nick Mirabito appears among the top 10 on Navy's career points (9th, 149) and goals (T8th, 91) leader boards.
9 • Navy has held the lead at halftime in 9 of its 10 games this season.
8 • Eight of the last 13 games between Navy and Maryland have been decided by one goal, includeing each of the last three.
7 • Navy has scored seven or more goals in nine of its 10 games this year.
6 • Six players on Navy's roster have produced hat tricks during their careers, including four this season.
5 • Navy has held its opponent to five or fewer goals in seven of its 10 games.
4 • Nick Mirabito (18-19) is one of only four players in the country who have amassed 18 goals and 18 assists this season ... he joins Duke's Matt Danowski (26-30) and Zack Greer (33-20), along with Virginia's Garrett Billings (22-18).
3 • Only three Navy players on the current roster have scored goals against Maryland, including sophomores Tim Paul and Basil Daratsos who each scored a pair in their first game against the Terps.
2 • Navy's two losses this season have been overtime decisions to sixth-ranked Cornell and fourth-ranked Georgetown.
1 • Navy is the nation's leader in wins over the last five years with 57 ... Duke is second with 55 wins.

Byrd Stadium Renovation
• Due to ongoing construction of The Suites at Byrd Stadium, fans will find significant differences regarding seating on Friday night.
• Fans must enter the stadium on the North side of the field -- opposite Tyser Tower, directly under the Upper Deck ... fans will not be allowed to enter the stadium on the South side of the field.
• For more information, log onto http://umterps.cstv.com/sports/m-lacros/spec-rel/032508aad.html (.)

Navy vs. Maryland - The Series
• On Friday night, Navy and Maryland will meet for the 63rd-consecutive year ... it's the second-longest continuous lacrosse series between Navy and another opponent ... only Army has played Navy longer (next week is the 76th-straight year the two have met).
• Maryland leads the series, 50-31-1, however, the Midshipmen have won three of the last four contests, including two in a row at Byrd Stadium in College Park.
• Seven of the last nine games played between the two teams have been decided by one goal, including last year's double overtime win by the Terps which snapped Navy's three-game winning streak in the series.
• The Terrapins own a 21-12 advantage in games played in College Park, including wins in five of the last seven ... the Mids, however, claimed a 9-6 win in 2004 and a 7-6 victory in 2006.
• Only three Navy players on this year's roster have scored goals against Maryland - Basil Daratsos and Tim Paul each scored two goals a year ago as freshmen, while senior middie Terence Higgins scored in his sophomore campaign when Navy beat Maryland, 7-6, in College Park.
• Though he is ranked No. 8 in the program's goal scoring history, Navy senior attack Nick Mirabito has never scored a goal against Maryland ... he turned in an assist in each of his first two games and last year he was held without a goal or an assist ... having logged 56-career games, last year's Maryland tilt is the only game in which Mirabito has not scored a goal or dealt out an assist ... at the time, his 40-game point streak was the second-longest active streak in Div. I.
• Navy's 9-6 win over Maryland in 2004 is the first document win over a No. 1-ranked opponent in program history.

The Last Time ...
• Midfielder Dan Groot's goal 42 seconds into the second overtime period snapped Navy's three-game stronghold over Maryland, as the 11th-ranked Terps upset No. 6 Navy, 8-7, at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in front of 14,625 fans.
• It is the third-largest documented crowd to see a game at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium and the 11th largest in NCAA Div. I history (regular-season game).
•Despite a two-goal deficit with just under six minutes remaining in the contest, Maryland kept its composure.
•The Terps trimmed the lead to one with 4:53 left when Michael Phipps fed Jeremy Sieverts who was slashing in front of the crease and one-timed it past Navy keeper Colin Finnegan.
•Minutes later, junior midfielder Drew Evans sent the game into overtime after his low-to-high shot sailed over Finnegan's right shoulder from more than 10 yards out with just seven seconds remaining in regulation.
• Navy had its best opportunity to score when rookie midfielder Basil Daratsos fired off a shot in the first overtime period, only to have it stuffed by Terrapin goalkeeper Brian Phipps, who had a sensational game in goal with 13 stops.
•Navy rookies Daratsos and Tim Paul, starting his first-collegiate game in place of the injured Bruce Nechanicky, turned in solid performances for the Midshipmen, including early in the contest when Paul fed Daratsos for the game's first goal with just 1:42 elapsed.
• Daratsos finished the game with a pair of goals, while Paul scored back-to-back markers early in the third quarter.
• On the heels of Paul's two goals, senior attack Ian Dingman fired off his lone goal of the game at the 8:27 mark to give the Mids a 6-4 lead. Dingman added a pair of goals in the loss.
• Navy outshot the Terps, 30-24, including a 15-5 advantage after the first two quarters. Maryland turned the tables in the second half, owning a 16-13 advantage, including a 10-5 edge in the third quarter.
• Navy face-off specialists William Wallace and Mikelis Visgauss did a fantastic job of giving the Midshipmen possession. The two combined (Wallace 7-11, Visgauss 6-7) to win 13-of-18 draws with the 19th taken by close defenseman Andy Tormey.

Upon Further Review
• The following are a few highlights/notes from last Saturday's Navy-Georgetown game.
• Sophomore midfielder Patrick Moran pitched his first collegiate hat trick ... he is one of six players on the Navy roster who have turned in hat tricks during their careers and the fourth different player this season.
• Senior attack Gregory Clement turned in his second career three-point performance with a pair of goals and an assist ... he first achieved the feat in Navy's 8-7 overtime win at Ohio State on Feb. 16.
• Scoring a goal for the first time in seven games was second-year middie Basil Daratsos, who scored two goals in the four quarter including the game-tying goal with 39 seconds remaining in regulation ... Daratsos had last scored a goal in the Mids' 8-7 overtime loss to Cornell on Feb. 23.
• Sophomore attack Tim Paul saw his six-game goal-scoring streak come to an end ... he had scored at least a goal in each of the games during the Mids' six-game winning streak, including four multi-goal performances.
• Navy's six-game home winning streak was snapped ... the Georgetown loss was the Mids' first loss at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium since last year's double-overtime loss (8-7) against 11th-ranked Maryland.
• Navy suffered only its second loss since 2004 when scoring 10 or more goals ... going into the game, the Mids owned a 33-1 record when scoring in double figures.
• It's just the sixth time in the last 40 games (2006-present) in which Navy's defensive unit has given up 10 or more goals.

Navy-Maryland Ties
• Fourth-year Navy assistant coach Ryan Moran is a 2003 graduate of Maryland where he received All-America honors and All-ACC recognition as a midfielder for the Terrapins lacrosse team ... he scored a combined 50 points in his final two years of action.
• Maryland junior midfielder Jeremy Sieverts played his first season at Butler for first-year Navy assistant coach Stan Ross, who was the head coach of the Bulldogs before the program was dropped following the 2007 campaign.

A Closer Look at Navy's Schedule
• Seven of Navy's 13 regular-season opponents this season are among the nation's top 20 teams according to the March 31 edition of the USILA Coaches Poll ... Maryland (3), Georgetown (5) and Cornell (7) are all among the top 10, while Johns Hopkins (11), Bucknell (13), Army (14) and Ohio State (18) round out Navy's ranked foes.
• Navy owns a 1-2 record against opponents who have appeared in the national rankings at the time of the contest.
• Since the start of the 2004 season, Navy has played 38 of its 74 games against teams ranked in the top 25, posting a 23-15 record ... two of the losses have come against the No. 1-ranked team in the country at the time (Johns Hopkins twice) ... meanwhile, five of the losses have been at the hands of Georgetown ('05, '06 2x, '07, '08) ... other losses to ranked teams in that span were against No. 20 Ohio State ('04), No. 4 Syracuse ('04), No. 7 Georgetown ('05), No. 6 Virginia ('05), No. 5 Georgetown ('06), No. 12 Johns Hopkins ('06), No. 5 Georgetown ('06), No. 7 Georgetown ('07), No. 11 Maryland ('07), No. 7 Johns Hopkins ('07), No. 9 North Carolina ('07) and No. 6 Cornell ('08).
• In fact, since the start of the 2000 campaign, 68 of Navy's 126 games have been against ranked teams ... in those games against ranked opponents, Navy is 35-33 (.515).
• In games against unranked foes since 2000, Navy is 53-5 (.914) ... the losses have come to UMBC ('01), Air Force and Penn State ('03), Bucknell ('05) and Colgate ('06).

Fast Facts
• Senior attack Nick Mirabito has turned in a goal or an assist in 55 of the 56 games in which he has played during his career ... his 40-game streak was snapped against Maryland last spring and was the second-longest active streak in Div. I lax at the time ... he is currently riding a 15-game consecutive points run, including 14 straight games with an assist.
• Nick Mirabito is one of only four players in the country with at least 18 goals and 18 assists ... he joins Duke's Matt Danowski (26-30) and Zack Greer (33-20), along with Virginia's Garrett Billings (22-18) ... Mirabito has 18 goals and 19 assists in 2008.
• Sophomore attack Tim Paul has turned in multi-goal games six times this season, while Nick Mirabito has five games with two or more goals.
• Four players have turned in hat tricks this season ... Nick Mirabito has pitched a hat trick in three games (14 in his career), while junior Sean Standen recorded his first collegiate three-goal performance in Navy's win over Lehigh ... sophomore Tim Paul produced his second collegiate hat trick with three markers against Holy Cross at Texas Stadium, while second-year midfielder Patrick Moran tallied his first three-goal game in last week's loss against No. 4 Georgetown.
• Navy has held the lead at halftime in nine of the 10 games this season ... the Georgetown game was the first time this season the Mids have trailed at the break ... the Mids have lost 13 in a row when trailing at the break and 58 straight when trailing after three quarters of play.
• The Mids have held four of their last five opponents to three goals, including nationally-ranked Bucknell.
• The Mids have outscored their opponents, 20-8, in the first quarter this spring, including 10-2 in Patriot League play.
• Six different players have accounted for Navy's eight game-winners this season ... ironically, the two top goal producers on the team, Nick Mirabito and Tim Paul, were without a game-winner until the two teamed up against Bucknell and Mirabito fed Paul for the game-winner in OT.
• Navy has played a program-record four OT games this season and own a 2-2 record in those contests ... Bucknell is the only team in the Patriot League who has forced the Midshipmen into extra minutes since Navy joined the conference in 2004 ... the Bison upset the Mids in 2005, 8-7, and dropped a 4-3 OT decision in Annapolis this season.
• Navy turned in back-to-back double-digit victories over Lehigh (14-3) and Holy Cross (16-3) marking the first time the Mids have achieved that feat since 2000 when Navy defeated Stony Brook, 16-4, followed by a 17-2 win over rival Academy Air Force in a span of just four days.
• Navy's 13-goal win over Holy Cross was the largest margin of victory by a Richie Meade-led team since 2006 when the Mids defeated Holy Cross by 14 (17-3) ... meanwhile it's tied as the seventh-largest margin of victory by Meade's Mids.

A Dominant Stretch
• Navy is in the midst of one of its most dominant five-year runs in school history ... since the start of the 2004 season, Navy owns a 57-17 record (.770).
• Boasting 57 wins, Navy owns more victories over the last five years than any other Div. I program, while its .770 winning percentage is third behind Cornell (.803) and Johns Hopkins (.783).
• During that same stretch, Navy is 23-15 (.605) against ranked teams and 34-2 mark (.944) against unranked foes.
• Since the start of the 2004 season, Navy owns a 7-7 (.500) record against teams ranked higher than it in the USILA Coaches Poll ... against lower ranked or unranked teams, Navy is 50-10 (.833).
• The Mids have posted a 29-7 (.806) record at home, outscoring their foes, 402-229 during that span ... just five teams have reached double digits on Navy's home field during that stretch.
• The Mids are also respectable on road, owning a 19-7 record in true road affairs over the last five years and defeating 11 ranked teams in the process ... two of Navy's seven road losses have come against unranked Patriot League opponents.
• Over the last five seasons, the Mids have produced the top-three win totals in school history ... in 2004, Navy won 15 games en route to its NCAA Championship game appearance and in 2005, the Mids produced 12 wins in earning their second-consecutive NCAA Tournament berth ... Navy won 11 games in 2006 and '07.
• The Class of 2007 became the winningest class in school history on March 21, 2007, when it claimed its 45th win in 56 contests ... the Class of '07 graduated having won 49 of its 64 contests (.766) ... the Class of '06 turned in a 44-18 record (.710) ... the Class of '08 owns a 42-14 record (.750).
• Behind a 12-1 win over Army in the Patriot League Tournament semifinals last spring, the Mids picked up their 10th win of the season, marking the fourth consecutive year Navy has won 10 or more games ... it's only the second time in program history and the first time since 1975-78, the Mids have strung together double-figure wins in four straight years (15 in 2004, 12 in 2005, 11 in 2006 and 11 in 2007).