Navy Men’s Soccer Falls to Lehigh 2-1 After Late Second-Half Turnaround
By Brian Hradsky
The Navy Midshipmen men’s soccer team carried a one-goal advantage into halftime Saturday night but could not withstand a second-half surge from Lehigh, falling 2-1 at the Ulrich Sports Complex in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
Navy freshman Ryan Skandalis scored the first goal of his collegiate career to give the Midshipmen a 1-0 advantage in the 21st minute. That lead survived the remainder of the opening half despite sustained pressure from the Mountain Hawks, but Lehigh finally broke through with two goals five minutes apart in the second half.
Massimo Talarico equalized for Lehigh in the 63rd minute before Bora Turker converted a penalty kick in the 68th. Navy also lost Alex Galloway to a second yellow card on the play that produced the penalty, leaving the Midshipmen to finish the match with 10 men.
The defeat dropped Navy to 2-4-4 overall and 0-2-1 in Patriot League play. Lehigh improved to 3-2-4 overall and 3-0-0 in the conference with the victory.
Skandalis puts Navy ahead
Neither side generated much offense during the opening stages, but Navy took advantage when its opportunity arrived.
Gavin McBride helped start the scoring sequence with a run down the wing before sending the ball toward Keane Brown. Brown redirected it to Skandalis, who was crashing toward goal and finished past Lehigh goalkeeper Anton Kinnunen at the 20:37 mark.
The goal was Skandalis’ first at the collegiate level and also represented the first points of his Navy career. Brown and McBride were each credited with assists.
It was an efficient finish for a Navy attack that did not receive many opportunities against a strong Lehigh defensive unit.
Lehigh gradually began controlling possession and creating opportunities as the first half continued. Aiden Gonzalez hit the right post in the 32nd minute, while Navy goalkeeper Pierce Clark stopped Alex Junquera three minutes later.
Navy received another major break just before halftime.
Shea Coughlin struck the post from a free kick in the 45th minute, and Paul Smajlaj was positioned for the rebound. Clark reacted quickly, sprawling to make the save and preserve Navy’s 1-0 advantage going into halftime.
The scoreboard favored Navy, but the statistics showed the pressure the Midshipmen were absorbing. Lehigh outshot Navy 9-2 during the opening 45 minutes.
Lehigh pressure finally produces equalizer
Navy continued protecting its advantage early in the second half, and Jack Illig nearly provided the Midshipmen with some insurance in the 57th minute.
Illig found space and attempted a long-range shot but sent it just outside the upper-right corner.
Six minutes later, Lehigh finally found its equalizer.
A dangerous Mountain Hawks free kick struck the crossbar before Landon Bealer collected the loose ball. Bealer moved it to Talarico, who fired his shot into the right side of the net past Clark at 62:06.
After spending much of the match protecting a narrow lead, Navy suddenly found itself level at 1-1.
The situation became considerably more difficult only five minutes later.
Penalty changes the game
Turker was battling Galloway for position inside the Navy penalty area when Galloway was called for a foul.
The call resulted in a penalty kick and Galloway’s second yellow card of the match. Galloway had received his first booking in the 54th minute, meaning the second yellow resulted in his dismissal.
Turker stepped to the spot and drove the penalty toward the right side of the goal. Clark guessed correctly and dove in that direction, but he could not reach the shot.
Lehigh suddenly led 2-1 at 67:03.
The sequence completely changed Navy’s task. The Midshipmen went from protecting a lead earlier in the half to chasing the game while playing a man down for the final 23 minutes.
Navy tries to survive with 10 men
Navy’s defense kept the deficit at one despite Lehigh continuing to push forward.
The Midshipmen blocked several attempts as the Mountain Hawks tried to put the match away, while Clark denied Vito Braun in the 85th minute. Navy eventually generated one final opportunity from a corner kick in the 88th minute, but Lehigh cleared the danger.
The Mountain Hawks then saw out the remaining minutes to secure the 2-1 victory.
Lehigh finished with an overwhelming 22-4 advantage in total shots and put five attempts on goal compared with only one for Navy. The Mountain Hawks also held a narrow 5-4 advantage in corner kicks.
Clark recorded three saves for Navy. Kinnunen officially finished without a save because Navy’s only shot on goal was Skandalis’ goal.
The numbers demonstrate just how much pressure Navy’s defense faced throughout the night. Lehigh generated more than five times as many total shots, yet the Midshipmen remained in position to earn points until the Mountain Hawks’ decisive five-minute stretch in the second half.
First collegiate goal for Skandalis
The result was disappointing for Navy, but Skandalis provided an important individual bright spot.
His first-half finish gave him his first collegiate goal and first collegiate points. The play also showed Navy’s ability to punish an opponent quickly when McBride, Brown and Skandalis combined effectively in transition.
Navy simply could not generate enough additional chances to complement the early breakthrough.
Lehigh’s defense entered the match playing extremely well. The Mountain Hawks had recorded five consecutive shutouts before facing Navy, including a 0-0 draw against Columbia earlier in the week. Skandalis therefore became the first player in six matches to score against Lehigh.
That makes Navy’s inability to hold the advantage even more frustrating. The Midshipmen accomplished something several previous opponents could not do by breaking through Lehigh’s defense, but the Mountain Hawks’ sustained attack eventually overcame the deficit.
Lehigh controls the chances
Navy’s biggest issue was the disparity in opportunities.
Lehigh’s 22-4 advantage in shots meant Navy spent long portions of the match defending rather than building its own attack. Even while the Midshipmen held the lead, the Mountain Hawks continued hitting the woodwork and forcing Navy to scramble inside its defensive third.
Navy’s defense deserves credit for keeping the Midshipmen ahead as long as it did. Clark made several timely plays, and the posts also helped Navy survive the first half.
Eventually, however, repeatedly defending dangerous situations became too much.
The free-kick sequence that produced Talarico’s equalizer was followed almost immediately by the foul that resulted in Turker’s penalty. A 1-0 Navy advantage became a 2-1 deficit in approximately five minutes.
Playing the final portion of the match with 10 men made finding an equalizer even more difficult.
Patriot League implications
The result left the programs heading in opposite directions within the early Patriot League standings.
Lehigh moved to 3-0-0 in league competition and, at the conclusion of Saturday’s match, held sole possession of first place. The victory also extended the Mountain Hawks’ unbeaten streak to seven matches at the time.
Navy, meanwhile, fell to 0-2-1 in conference play.
There is still significant soccer remaining, but conference points become increasingly valuable as the season progresses. Navy already demonstrated against Lehigh that it can compete with one of the league’s stronger early-season teams. Turning those competitive performances into results will be critical over the coming weeks.
The loss also moved Navy’s all-time record against Lehigh to 35-25-9.
What is next
Navy returns home Saturday, Oct. 3, when the Midshipmen host Colgate at the Glenn Warner Soccer Facility in Annapolis. Kickoff is scheduled for 3 p.m.
That match provides Navy with another opportunity to secure its first Patriot League victory of the season.
The Midshipmen showed Saturday that they can grab an early advantage against a quality conference opponent. The next challenge is maintaining that performance for a full 90 minutes while finding ways to generate more consistent offensive pressure.
MSB Take
This one will sting for Navy because the Midshipmen had already done one of the hardest things against Lehigh: score first. Skandalis broke through a Mountain Hawks defense that had entered the night riding five consecutive shutouts, and Navy carried that advantage all the way into halftime.
The problem was that Navy spent far too much of the game absorbing pressure. A 22-4 disadvantage in shots is difficult to survive against any opponent, particularly against a Lehigh side that had opened Patriot League play with consecutive victories. Navy’s defense and Clark kept the Midshipmen alive for a long time, but eventually the opportunities became too frequent.
The five-minute stretch containing Talarico’s equalizer, Galloway’s second yellow card and Turker’s penalty proved decisive. Navy went from leading to trailing and playing with 10 men in a matter of minutes.
There are positives to take from the match, particularly Skandalis’ first collegiate goal and the resilience Navy showed defensively. However, the Midshipmen need more sustained possession and more attacking chances if they are going to start turning close Patriot League matches into victories.
Saturday’s home game against Colgate now becomes an important opportunity for Navy to respond.
