Loyola College will seek its third consecutive Battle of Baltimore men's soccer title against a school it has dominated.
That was determined yesterday at Towson when the Greyhounds outlasted a scrappy Naval Academy team, 2-1, in overtime and UMBC scored in the 80th minute of regulation to top Towson, 1-0, in semifinal games.
In 19 previous meetings with UMBC, Loyola (2-0) has won 17 and tied two. One of the Retrievers' defeats came in a highly contested 3-2 overtime game last year in this tournament.
The teams will play at 4:30 p.m. tomorrow after Towson tries to become the first host team ever to win a game in an event inaugurated in 2001, facing Navy at 2 p.m.
The Greyhounds' overtime specialist, Kevin Nash, struck again at 92:56, taking an exceptional lead pass from Jay Joyce to knock in the winner against Navy (0-2). Nash also scored in the first extra period to beat nationally ranked Syracuse in the opener.
"Jay made a great pass and I was patient and slid it right under the goalie's arm," said Nash, a junior from Bridgewater, N.J. "I'm glad it's over. We're not a big, physical team and it was real tough all day. Navy is non-stop."
Loyola quickly gained a 1-0 lead at 4:41 on freshman Omar Alfonso's goal against a breakdown in Navy's defense. He took a feed from Steven Coleman and easily scored as the Midshipmen failed to react to the ball soon enough.
"We got there too late on that one," said Greg Myers, Navy's coach. "But, overall I'm pleased. Loyola's a good team, and we hung in there with them. My little puppies [14 freshmen, six of them starters] played all right."
The Midshipmen (0-2) tied at 35:45 when senior Jamie Coyle broke down the left side and crossed a pass to Matt Sanchez, who beat Loyola goalie Greg Peters. Navy forced much of the action through the final 20 minutes of the first half and into the second, but could never get the lead.
"Navy is such a rugged team to play," said Loyola coach Mark Mettrick. "They battle and they're difficult to break down. They do a nice job of frustrating you, and they're resilient."
UMBC (2-0-1) remained unscored upon in 290 minutes. Leading returning scorer Derek McElligott (Greater Grace) broke through at 80:50, scoring a goal on which the Tigers believed he was offside.
"Our player was looking for outside help on the play, but you can't depend on an official to make the call," said Towson coach Frank Olszewski. "You've got to keep playing, especially when the game's in the balance."
Towson (0-1-1), which is hurting for offense, packed back and effectively kept the offense-minded Retrievers at bay with a strong effort by goalie Zak Thompson, but got off only four shots of its own.
Loyola 2, Navy 1, OT
Navy 1 0 0 0 - 1
Loyola 1 0 1 0 - 2
Goals: N-Sanchez; L-Alfonso, Nash. Assists: N-Coyle; L-Coleman, Joyce. Saves: N-DeFilippo 4; L-Peters 1.
UMBC 1, Towson 0
UMBC 0 1 - 1
Towson 0 0 - 0
Goal: UMBC-McElligott. Assist: UMBC-Feazell. Saves: UMBC-Marchica 1; T-Thompson 5.
