Navy men’s lacrosse is officially in crisis mode. The Midshipmen suffered their fourth straight loss and this latest setback wasn’t even close.
Sophomore attackman Rory Connor scored seven goals and assisted two others to lead host Colgate to a convincing 17-8 victory over Navy Saturday at Andy Kerr Stadium in Hamilton, New York.
Junior attackman Michael Minicus dished off five assists for the Raiders, who picked up their first win after starting the season with three losses.
Connor scored five of his goals and Minicus handed off three of his assists during a 10-0 first-half run that basically decided the contest. An unassisted goal by Adam Salvaggio started the onslaught at the 8:17 mark of the first quarter and Connor’s fourth consecutive goal ended it with 8:33 remaining in the second period.
Navy starting goalie Dan Daly gave up nine goals and stopped just three shots before being pulled. Pat Ryan took over between the pipes and did not fare much better, allowing six goals and making just one save.
“I am embarrassed by our performance today. The uninspired effort is my fault,” fourth-year Navy coach Joe Amplo said. “As a staff, we have to evaluate all of the decisions we have made and try to quickly adjust our course. Navy lacrosse should not look like it did today and it is our responsibility to make sure that doesn’t happen again.”
Attackmen Ash Carter and Jon Jarosz, along with midfielder Max Hewitt, all scored two goals to lead the Navy offense, which misfired on many levels. The Midshipmen unleashed 49 shots, only 29 going on goal.
Colgate goalie Matt Lacombe recorded 21 saves, but few of them were difficult as Navy settled for too many low-percentage shots.
Navy was playing its first game this season without All-American midfielder Patrick Skalniak, who is out indefinitely with an upper back injury. Dane Swanson, another member of the first midfield, sat out for a second straight game with an undisclosed injury.
Converted attackman Henry Tolker and plebe Jack Flaherty moved onto the first midfield alongside Hewitt. Freshman attackman Race Ripley, an Archbishop Spalding product, made his collegiate debut and produced two assists.
It was the most lopsided loss of the season for the Midshipmen (3-4, 1-1 Patriot League), who have struggled in every area of the field since starting 3-0.
Johns Hopkins at Navy
Friday, 7 p.m.
Stream: ESPN+
Radio: 1430 AM