ANNAPOLIS, Md. – In the latest chapter of the greatest rivalry in sports, the No. 5-ranked Army West Point men's lacrosse (10-1, 5-1 Patriot League) team traveled to Annapolis to take on the RV Navy Midshipmen (7-5, 3-3 Patriot League) at the Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. The Black Knights claimed the win 12-11 in overtime off a laser from Jackson Eicher to claim the win in the 97th Army-Navy Men's Lacrosse Star Game as part of the Star Series, presented by USAA.
Three Black Knights recorded three points in the win as Jackson Eicher and Evan Plunkett each earned a hat trick and Gunnar Fellows recorded two goals and an assist. Finn McCullough added two tallies to the goal column to keep Army tied with the Mids including a buzzer-beater to make it 4-4 headed into halftime.
Army was dominant in the neutral zone, winning 17 of the game's 25 faceoffs, causing 12 turnovers, and picking up 41 ground balls. Will Coletti, Christian Fournier, and Ryan Nixon ran a tough midfield, picking up a combined 21 ground balls with four caused turnovers for Fournier and one for Nixon.
Sean Byrne held it down in goal for the Black Knights, recording six saves against the Mids' 16 shots on goal. The game marks just the third time this season an opponent has managed to score 10 or more goals against the Black Knights.
FINAL SCORE:
Army - 12
Navy - 11
HOW IT HAPPENED
It may have been an overcast day in Maryland, but the Black Knights shone through the mire in pursuit of victory.
The long-time rivals traded possession over the first seven minutes of action and the Midshipmen would break open the scoring with a goal up the middle. Gunnar Fellows tied things up for Army just over a minute later, haunting the Mids' crease and making good on a laser of a pass from Keagan Treacy to bring the game to a 1-1 tie.
Jackson Eicher notched his 36th goal of the season with less than two minutes remaining on the first quarter clock, working around a matchup against a short stick midfielder to bury a shot down low. The Mids pulled even a few minutes later on an extra man opportunity to bring things tied at two goals each.
Navy took the lead midway through the second quarter with a long pole goal from AJ Marsh, extending their lead to two 40 seconds later to advance to a 4-2 mark in the Mids' favor. Senior attackman Finn McCullough eliminated the deficit with less than two minutes on the clock.
The Niskayuna, N.Y. native first recorded Army's third goal of the game as he battled his defender around to the point to bury his fifth goal of the season head-on with 1:56 left on the clock. He then launched a shot from the goal line with less than a second on the clock off a pass from Hill Plunkett to beat the buzzer and bring Army tied 4-4.
The sun broke through the clouds as the third quarter began and the Army offense broke open the scoring as freshman attackman Aiden Weisenborn let it rip from distance and nailed the left side top shelf to put Army into the lead 5-4 two minutes into the second half.
Gunnar Fellows netted his second goal of the day off the assist from Dylan D'Agostino who drew Navy's defense away from the goal and opened up a lane for Fellows to find his 22nd goal of the season. Evan Plunkett and Brayden Fountain went back-to-back on unassisted goals to push Army up to an 8-6 lead that held through the third quarter break.
A 3-0 run to start the fourth quarter eliminated Army's lead and took the Mids into the advantage, but Jackson Eicher found the back of the cage for the second time that day off of a pass from Hill Plunkett across the point to bring things tied at nine all.
Determined to defend their home turf, the Mids put up two goals a minute apart to claim an 11-9 lead with five minutes remaining in regulation. Back-to-back unassisted goals from Evan Plunkett in the final two minutes of play sent the game into overtime.
With the star on the line, the two teams gave it their all and goalkeepers Sean Byrne and Dan Daly each delivered saves in the first half of the overtime period before Army seized hold of the momentum and charged into Navy's defensive zone.
The Black Knights dogged the Mids' doorstep as Christian Mazur bounced a shot in front of the net to give Army the opportunity to call a timeout and set themselves up for the ensuing onslaught.
Jackson Eicher took his 14th shot of the day and it flew wide but just under 30 seconds later his 15th shot of the day flew true and found the back of the net to clinch the win for Army.
Army's victory marks its 39th all-time win over Navy, its 36th Star Game victory, and its 20th victory over the Mids in Annapolis. With the win, Army moves to a 10-1 record for the season with a 5-1 mark against Patriot League opponents, securing its fourth consecutive season with at least 10 wins.
BLACK KNIGHT BULLET POINTS
• Jackson Eicher, Evan Plunkett, and Gunnar Fellows led the Black Knights' offense with three points each. Eicher and Plunkett each recorded a hat trick while Fellows nabbed two goals and an assist.
• Army had six different goal scorers against the Mids – Eicher, Plunkett, Fellows, Brayden Fountain, Aiden Weisenborn, and Finn McCullough. McCullough was the fourth Black Knights of the day to log multiple goals against Navy.
• The Black Knights dominated the midfield, winning 17 of 25 faceoffs, causing 12 turnovers, and picking up 41 ground balls. Will Coletti, Christian Fournier, and Ryan Nixon ran a tough midfield, picking up nine, six, and six ground balls respectively with four caused turnovers for Fournier and one for Nixon.
• The Black Knights dominated the possession game, recording 48 shots to Navy's 28 with 25 shots on goal for Army to the Mids' 16. The Black Knights also recorded just 18 overall turnovers to Navy's 25 total turnovers.
UP NEXT
The Black Knights will return home to Michie Stadium in West Point, N.Y. to take on the Bucknell Bison on Saturday, April 19th at 12:00p.m. ET. Fans can catch the action on ESPN+ or follow along with the live stats here.
LOOKING BACK ...
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