ANNAPOLIS — Navy’s first regular season in the Patriot League was a breeze. Its meeting with top-ranked Johns Hopkins next week probably won’t be.
The second-ranked Midshipmen wrapped up a perfect conference record with a 23-5 pasting of Holy Cross before 2,284 yesterday at Navy-Marine Corps Stadium, setting up a clash of the nation’s top two teams when Hopkins comes to town Saturday.
It also completed a stretch of two games in three days for the Mids, who could face similar scenarios in the Patriot League and NCAA tournaments later in the season.
“It wasn’t the same type situation it could be down the road,” said Navy coach Richie Meade, whose team’s nine-game winning streak is the program’s longest since a 33-game roll from 1964 to 1967. “Emotionally, the guys were ready to play. They did a good job [Saturday] of going through the sequence of what we may have to do in the future.”
The Mids (10-1, 7-0) became the 10th team in the Patriot League’s 14-year history to go undefeated in league play, but only the second since 1999. Navy, which will play host to the league tournament on April30 and May2, outscored its conference foes 116-42.
Joe Bossi (three goals) was among 18 players who scored for Navy, which clinched its first 10-win season since 1978.
The Crusaders (3-8, 0-7), who are 4-72 all time in Patriot League play, didn’t take their first shot until Navy built a 9-0 lead. It was Navy’s largest margin of victory and its highest offensive output since a 24-6 rout of Penn in 1980.
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