Feb. 28, 2012

• Alumni Day Flyer

ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- The Navy men's soccer team has announced a nine-game spring schedule that kicks off this weekend in Annapolis. In addition to five games here in the United States, the squad will spend parts of 10 days in Barcelona, Spain, over Spring Break as part of a cultural soccer tool.

The Midshipmen will take in a variety of sightseeing activities, will play four games against European teams, will have two training sessions and will attend a professional game and training session on the side.

"We are thrilled to have the opportunity as a program to take a trip like this that will be both an excellent cross-cultural experience for our guys and an incredible soccer opportunity to train and play at a very high levelwhile spending 10 days immersed in a soccer environment like the one that exists in Barcelona," said Navy head coach Dave Brandt. "We hope to get a lot out of the trip and should be a very exciting week for the Navy men's soccer team."

In addition, the team has released its 2012 spring schedule which kicks off this weekend. The team has spent the last few weeks training while running the PRT on Feb. 16. The PRT consists of a 1.5-mile run which comes after 101 pushups and 101 situps. The team average was 8:11, which was the fastest time recorded since Coach Brandt arrived in the winter of 2008.

"We are trying to create a culture of fitness and intensity year round and from that standpoint, we have performed admirably. They have put in a lot of time and effort since the season ended in November. They have worked and trained very hard and we are excited to see what we can do against a tough spring schedule," said Brandt.

Navy will open up its five-game spring schedule this weekend in Annapolis when it faces the FC Hawks at 2:00 pm at the Glenn Warner Soccer Facility. After its 10-day, four-game trip to Barcelona, Spain, Navy will take on LaSalle at noon on March 24, also in Annapolis. The Explorers finished last season with a 7-9-4 overall record while advancing to the Atlantic 10 Tournament semifinals.

The following weekend (March 31), Navy travels to the Nation's Capital to face a very good Georgetown squad that went 10-5-4 and was nationally ranked for much of the season. Kick-off is slated for 1:00 pm on Georgetown's campus.

After a weekend off, Navy will take part in the B+ Showcase beginning on Saturday, April 14 in New Castle, Del., at the Kirkwood Soccer Club. Navy's opponent is unknown at the time.

Navy's last spring contest will be at Loyola, Md., on April 21 at 7:00 pm in Baltimore. The two teams played a memorable 3-3 tie last year in Annapolis in a match that was called late in the second half due to lightning. The Mids led in the game 2-0, before Loyola scored three straight goals to take a 3-2 advantage. The Midshipmen tied the game a mere 40 seconds before lightning halted the contest.

Navy's Alumni Day will conclude the spring season on April 28. Festivities begin at 10:30 am and the Alumni vs. Alumni Game will take place at noon at the Glenn Warner Soccer Facility. A post-game reception will be held in the Glenn Warner Soccer Facility rotunda, beginning at 2:30 pm. Please RSVP to assistant coach Derek Potteiger at potteige@usna.edu or by calling 410-293-5542.

Navy finished 7-7-5 during the 2011 season and returns nine starters for the 2012 squad. The team will return 57 of the 67 points (85.1 percent) of its scoring, as well as all three goalkeepers that saw action during the 2011 season. Last year's squad advanced to the Patriot League Tournament for the first time since the 2001 season, a span of 10 seasons.

2012 Navy Men's Soccer Spring Schedule                                                     
Saturday, March 3     Hawks FC         Annapolis, Md.      2:00 pm
Saturday, March 24    La Salle         Annapolis, Md.     12:00 pm
Saturday, March 31    Georgetown       Washington, D.C.    1:00 pm
Saturday, April 14    B+ Showcase      New Castle, Del.    All Day
Saturday, April 21    Loyola, Md.      Baltimore, Md.      7:00 pm
Saturday, April 28    Alumni Day       Annapolis, Md.     10:30 am

# GO NAVY #