ANNAPOLIS, Md. – After opening its 2023-24 schedule last week with two 40-plus point decisions, one win and one loss, the Navy women’s basketball team will begin to better gauge where its young squad stands this Wednesday night with a return matchup versus Mount St. Mary’s. A rematch from last Nov. 19 that saw the Mids (1-1) fall late by single digits to the Mountaineers (0-1) in Emmitsburg, Head Coach Tim Taylor‘s team will be looking to redeem itself, while continuing to have its young, deep roster gain important playing experience. The first of four straight home games for Navy over the next 11 days will tip-off at 7 p.m. at Alumni Hall.
The Navy-Mount St. Mary’s game will have live stats provided online, as well as be broadcast on the ESPN+ platform. ESPN+ is a subscription-based streaming service that requires patrons to sign-up for monthly or yearly plans prior to tuning into the contest. An audio-only portion of the contests will also be available via WNAV: over the radio waves on 99.9 FM or 1430 AM, online at WNAV.com or through the iHeart and Audacy platforms.
Navy vs. Mount St. Mary’s
The Mids and Mountaineers have faced off 28 times in a series that dates back to Navy’s first varsity season (1977-78) … In that first-ever matchup on Feb. 11, 1978, Navy dropped a 64-56 decision at home to the Mount … Since that initial meeting, the teams regularly met in Maryland AIAW and Eastern AIAW competitions sometimes up to three times in a season … Long-time rivals in the Division II ranks, Navy’s first game as a Division I program came on Nov. 22, 1991 at the Mount St. Mary’s Tip-Off; the Mids fell by a 63-50 score … All-time, the Mountaineers hold an 19-9 advantage in the series, though separated out into Division I action (1991-Present), the series goes slightly to the Mount, 5-4 … Playing within its friendly confines, Navy leads the series, 7-5 … Currently, the Mids have won four straight at Alumni Hall versus the Mountaineers (2013, 2010, 2006, 1997) … Last year’s Nov. 19 meeting was the first in the series since 2013; the Mount was victorious in Emmitsburg, 68-59
Last Five Meetings
Nov. 19, 2022 (A): Mount St. Mary’s 68 – Navy 59
Dec. 3, 2013 (H): Navy 63 – Mount St. Mary’s 55
Dec. 8, 2012 (A): Mount St. Mary’s 53 – Navy 45
Nov. 26, 2011 (A): Mount St. Mary’s 52 – Navy 45
Dec. 8, 2010 (H): Navy 63 – Mount St. Mary’s 46
Most Recent Navy-Mount St. Mary’s Matchup — Nov. 19, 2022 in Emmitsburg
The Navy women’s basketball team had a streaky performance on the road at Mount St. Mary’s. Taking on their second straight 2022 NCAA Tournament participating team, the Mids (0-4) had slow first and third quarters, though a strong second period and a quick start to the fourth left them down just four points with five minutes to go in regulation before the Mountaineers (1-3) made their final seven field goals attempts and seven of eight free throws to earn the 68-59 victory at Knott Arena. Sydne Watts and Maren Louridas led Navy’s efforts on the offensive end as they combined for 29 points, 17 for Watts and 12 for Louridas. Both players tied for the team-high with six rebounds.
The game opened evenly as both squads netted four points over the first three-plus minutes. Watts recorded all of the points for Navy on a quick two-for-two start from the field. From that spot at 6:56, Mount St. Mary’s showcased the brand of basketball that made them champions of the Northeast Conference last season and outscored Navy, 10-2 for the rest of the first quarter.
Up 14-6, the Mount continued click on both ends of the court as it opened the second quarter on a 5-0 run over the first 96 seconds to extend its lead out to 19-6. With the score 23-13, the Mids shutout the Mountaineers and held the hosts to an 0-7 shooting performance over the final 5:27 of the half. With Mount St. Mary’s stagnant on the scoreboard, Navy rattled off eight unanswered points courtesy of a pair of Mimi Schrader three-pointers and a Morganne Andrews layup. Defensively, the Mids allowed the Mountaineers to convert just two field goals in the period, though the hosts took advantage of five successful free throws.
The action in the third quarter started out extremely fast as Navy scored on its first three possessions, while the Mount scored on two of its first three. This quick success evened the score at 27-27 at 7:58. The Mountaineers were unfazed by this challenge and responded with a 10-0 run over the next 2:25 to make it 37-27. Mount St. Mary’s continued to hold a lead between seven and 11 points for the remainder of the third quarter and took a 44-35 advantage into the quarter intermission.
The streakiness of the game flow carried on into the fourth quarter as neither squad made a basket over the initial 3:59 of the final period. The only points of the frame over that stretch were two free throws by Shannon Clarke. Clarke later added another free throw at 5:28 to draw Navy within four points at 44-40. Missing all eight of their first eight shots from the field to start the period the Mountaineers’ offense found its rhythm and was unstoppable in the closing minutes of the contest with a perfect seven-for-seven showing from the field and a seven-of-eight mark at the free throw line for 24 points. The Mids tried valiantly to hang with the hosts as they recorded five made baskets and six good free throws for 19 points of their own. Louridas and Watts were at the forefront of Navy’s attack as Louridas sank a pair of three-pointers and a pair of free throws for eight individual points, while Watts posted seven points. At the conclusion of this chaotic end-to-end streak, the host Mountaineers were victorious, 68-59.
For the game, Mount St. Mary’s outshot Navy, 43.6 percent (24-55) to 39.6 (21-53) from the field and 94.1 percent (16-17) to 80.0 (12-15) from the foul line. Neither team was overly successful from three-point range as the Mids shot 29.4 percent (5-17) versus 18.2 percent for the Mountaineers (4-22).
Comparing the Teams
| (2023-24 Stats) | Navy | Mount St. Mary’s |
| Record / League-Only | 1-1, 0-0 PL | 0-1, 0-0 MAAC |
| Home / Away Record | 1-0 / 0-1 | 0-0 / 0-1 |
| Points Per Game | 61.0 PPG | 39.0 PPG |
| Points Allowed Per Game | 72.0 PPG | 58.0 PPG |
| Field Goal Percentage | 33.6 % | 35.7 % |
| 3-Point Percentage | 29.4 % | 27.8 % |
| Free Throw Percentage | 50.0 % | 57.1 % |
| Rebounds Per Game | 44.5 RPG | 32.0 RPG |
| Assists/Turnovers Per Game | 14.5 / 22.5 | 11.0 / 23.0 |
Returning Leaders
| (2022-23 Stats) | Navy | Mount St. Mary’s |
| Points Per Game | Zanai Barnett-Gay, 14.5 ppg | Tessa Engelman, 8.0 ppg |
| Rebounds Per Game | Z. Barnett-Gay, 10.0 rpg | Isabella Hunt, 9.0 rpg |
| Assists Per Game | Louridas / Smith, 3.5 apg | I. Hunt, 6.0 apg |
| Field Goal Percentage | Violet McNece, 50.0 % | J. Christ, 50.0 % |
| 3-Point Percentage | Maren Louridas, 50.0 % | T. Engelman, 40.0 % |
| Free Throw Percentage | Z. Barnett-Gay, 45.5 % | Giana Hoddinott, 1.000 % |
Last Time Out — Friday at Penn State
The Navy women’s basketball team dropped its 2023-24 road opener on Friday night at Penn State, 107-44 at the Bryce Jordan Center. Playing a upperclassmen-laden Nittany Lion (2-0) squad that has nine transfers and four fifth-year players, the Mids (1-1) shot out to an early lead, but were unable to weather a lengthy run by the hosts to close the first quarter and were in catch-up mode for the remaining three periods of play.
Freshman guard Zanai Barnett-Gay paced Navy in scoring and rebounding for the second straight contest as she recorded 11 points and nine rebounds over 32 minutes of action. Maren Louridas supported the Mids’ offensive charge with nine points on three-of-six shooting from three-point range.
Navy started the game on fire from three-point range as the Mids went three-for-three from distance on their first three possessions. Sydne Watts started the barrage with a triple from the wing before Louridas went back-to-back with swishes. With the score 9-4 at the 8:30 mark, the Lady Lions ran off nine unanswered points and pulled ahead 13-9 over the next 2:22. Kyah Smith found Louridas for another three-point conversion at 6:01 to end that streak and draw Navy back within one. The back-and-forth action continued as the teams traded two-point possessions over the next 70 seconds and the score advanced to 15-14 in favor of Penn State. Starting with a Leilani Kapinus layup at 4:41, the Lady Lions scored the final 18 points of the quarter to take a 33-14 lead into the break.
The hosts extended their scoring run to 22-0 as they knocked down the first two baskets of the second quarter. A pull-up jumper by Barnett-Gay at 6:24 put an end to the Mids’ scoring drought and made it a 37-16 game. Barnett-Gay and her fellow freshman classmate Violet McNece tallied the visitors’ final two field goals of the stanza with McNece’s make standing out as Navy’s fifth three-pointer of the first half.
Coming out down 56-21, the Mids put together their most complete offensive effort of the game in the third quarter as the team shot 41.2 percent (7-17) from the field and scored 14 points. Barnett-Gay and Gia Pissott split the scoring lead early for the third with four points each over the opening 4:57. Lizzie Holder, Watts and McNece all recorded field goals down the stretch to make it 85-35 through 30 minutes of play.
Competing hard until the end, Navy held Penn State scoreless for the first 4:46 to start the fourth quarter as the Mids’ defense pressured the Lady Lions into an 0-6 start with three turnovers. Unfortunately for Navy it was only able to mount a minimal 3-0 run during this span. Sam Schofield and Morgan Demos sparked the Mids’ offense late with a straight-away three-pointer by Schofield and a physical layup by Demos at the buzzer.
For the game, Penn State out-shot Navy, 55.4 percent (41-74) to 24.6 (17-69) from the field, 37.5 percent (9-24) to 22.2 (6-27) from three-point range and 66.7 percent (16-24) to 57.1 (4-7) from the foul line.
Defensively, the Mids were active as they forced 19 turnovers and were credited with seven steals, including two each by Barnett-Gay and McNece. In the post, Pissott and Morganne Andrews shared top defensive honors with two blocked shots a piece.
Parking / Shuttle
Fans are reminded that the general public does not have access to drive their vehicles on to the U.S. Naval Academy. Fans may park at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium for a fee and take a shuttle that will run every 10 minutes starting one hour before the game and will continue running until one hour after the game is completed. Fans 18 and over need a government-issued photo ID. Enter Gate 5 off Taylor Ave. to park at the stadium.