Navy Women’s Basketball Drops Second Straight Patriot League Contest

The Navy Midshipmen are having trouble pulling out of a valley that has dropped them out of the top of the league standings.

Nov 28, 2020; Annapolis, Maryland, USA; A general view of the Navy Midshipmen logo on a water tower near the stadium is seen before the game between the Navy Midshipmen and the Memphis Tigers at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. / Scott Taetsch-Imagn Images

The Navy Midshipmen women’s basketball team lost its second straight game in Patriot League action as they dropped an 87-66 contest against Lehigh on Wednesday.

This loss, combined with their loss to Army West Point last weekend put the Midshipmen (14-6, 6-3 in Patriot) two games out of the lead in league action. Lehigh (17-4, 8-1) remained at the top of the league standings with the victory.

The Midshipmen have now lost three of their last five games after winning six straight games, including their first four Patriot League games. Navy is now at the midway point of the Patriot League’s 18-game conference schedule, leading up to the Patriot League postseason tournament.

The game was close for three quarters, as the Midshipmen and Mountain Hawks were tied after the first and second quarters. Lehigh took a six-point lead after the third quarter and then walked away with the contest by outscoring Navy, 21-6, in the final 10 minutes of the game.

Navy was hurt by 20% shooting in the second half, along with a 13.3% clip in the fourth quarter. Lehigh shot 52% for the game and it sustained that throughout the contest.

The Midshipmen ended up shooting just 35% for the game, with their second-half percentage dragging down their first-half percentage.

Zanai Barnett-Gay led Navy with 19 points, shooting 6-of-20 from the floor and only making one 30-pointer. She also had five rebounds and four steals. Juliana Almeida, the reigning Patriot League rookie of the week, had 16 points. She also grabbed three rebounds.

Morgan Demos led the Midshipmen with seven rebounds and scored six points to along with it.

Maddie Albrecht, one of the league’s top players, scored a game-high 31 points, including six 3-pointers. She also had two assists, a steal and a block. Ella Stemmer scored 15 points, with four rebounds and two steals. Lily Fandre added 10 points with seven rebounds.

With the win, Lehigh improved to 38-34 in the all-time series, which dates back to 1981. The Mountain Hawks are now 20-16 at Alumni Hall. Lehigh is also 36-29 in games played as Patriot League members, dating back to 1991. The Mountain Hawks have also won 10 of the last 11 meetings.

Navy is preparing for a road trip to Bucknell on Saturday at 4 p.m. eastern. After a one-week break, the Midshipmen return home to host Lafayette at 4 p.m. on Feb. 8.