ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Head coach Cindy Timchal has announced the Navy women's lacrosse schedule for the upcoming 2009 season. The Midshipmen women will kick off the second season of Division I women's lacrosse at the Naval Academy on February 13 when they host fellow second-year program Presbyterian College in the first of 10 home dates at Navy-Marine Corps Stadium.

"With our first year under our belts and a talented group of freshmen now in the fold, as a program, we are anxiously awaiting the beginning of the spring season," said Timchal. "We are looking forward to what should yet again be a challenging Patriot League schedule.

"I was very encouraged with what I saw during the fall and with our second recruited class here, we are looking to build upon our first-year success and ultimately, contend for a league title. There's a ways to go and there is plenty of progress to still be made, but right now I am excited about the way things are shaping up for 2009."

Following its opener against the Blue Hose, Navy will host another DI upstart in Detroit Mercy on February 22. The Titans, the only Division I varsity lacrosse team in the state of Michigan, embark on their first varsity campaign in 2009.

The Midshipmen, themselves coming off the most successful season for a first-year program in NCAA history with a record 13 wins, will take to the road for four of their next five contests, beginning on February 28 at Longwood University.

A week later, Navy returns home to host Lafayette in the Patriot League opener for both teams. The brief stop in Annapolis precedes a three-game, eight-day road stretch that includes a pair of contests in upstate New York against Canisius (March 13) and Niagara (March 15) before the team's first league road test comes at Holy Cross (March 21).

Seven of Navy's final nine regular season contests will be played at the friendly confines of Navy-Marine Corps Stadium, where the Mids posted an 11-0 mark a year ago.

The season-ending stretch begins with a home contest against Big East opponent Villanova (March 24) and includes dates with defending league champion Colgate (March 28) and league foe Lehigh (April 11).

Navy will open up a busy month of action with a much-anticipated road game on April 1 against American University. The Mids and Eagles split their two meetings in 2008, with AU claiming a 17-15 come-from-behind win in the league semifinals.

The Mids play host to non-conference opponents Davidson (April 4), St. Mary's (April 7) and Robert Morris (April 14) before closing out their six-game Patriot League slate at Bucknell (April 18).

Two days later, Navy concludes the 2009 regular season at home against Howard University (April 20).

After qualifying for the Patriot League Tournament in its inaugural season, Navy aims to build upon its semifinal appearance and once again be one of the four squads playing for the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament in the four-team playoff set for April 24 and 26. The games will be played at the site of the top-seeded team.

Navy returns 21 players and six starters from its record-setting 2008 squad.

Date   Opponent / Event        Location           Time
  
02/08  vs. La Salle (scrim.)   Annapolis, Md.    12:00 p.m.
02/13  vs. Presbyterian        Annapolis, Md.     7:30 p.m.
02/22  vs. Detroit Mercy       Annapolis, Md.    12:00 p.m.
02/28  at Longwood             Farmville, Va.     1:00 p.m.
 
03/07  vs. Lafayette *         Annapolis, Md.     3:00 p.m.
03/13  at Canisius             Buffalo, N.Y.      3:00 p.m.
03/15  at Niagara              Niagara U., N.Y.  10:00 p.m.
03/21  at Holy Cross *         Worcester, Mass.   3:00 p.m.
03/24  vs. Villanova           Annapolis, Md.     6:30 p.m.
03/28  vs. Colgate *           Annapolis, Md.     1:00 p.m.
 
04/01  at American *           Washington, D.C.   3:30 p.m.
04/04  vs. Davidson            Annapolis, Md.     1:00 p.m.
04/07  vs. Saint Mary's        Annapolis, Md.     4:00 p.m.
04/11  vs. Lehigh *            Annapolis, Md.     1:00 p.m.
04/14  vs. Robert Morris       Annapolis, Md.     4:00 p.m.
04/18  at Bucknell *           Lewisburg, Pa.     1:00 p.m.
04/20  vs. Howard              Annapolis, Md.     4:00 p.m.
04/24  Patriot League Tournament

2008-11-18