via JU press release   JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Welcome to the Galloway era! In front of 2,481 of its closest fans, Jacksonville University men’s lacrosse opened the season in dominating fashion with a 12-7 victory over Navy, Sunday afternoon at D.B. Milne Field. Scoring five unanswered goals in the second period against the Midshipmen, who entered the contest receiving votes in the Maverik Lacrosse Media Poll, the Dolphins left no question regarding who the most understated program in the nation is. “I am really proud of our team for competing for 60 minutes today,” stated Head Coach John Galloway. “We made a lot of mistakes, but we never got down on each other; we just made the next play. I want to specifically thank our scout team, who prepared us for the last face days for exactly what we expected. Zach Crotty and Tyler Morris gave us incredible looks.” Behind senior Hunter Forbes‘ jaw-dropping 20-23 performance at the X and sophomore Dwayne Mattushik‘s career-high five goals, the Dolphins poured in unrelenting offense with 42 shots compared to the Mids’ 15. Jacksonville also held the advantage in ground balls, 38-22, after scooping 10 and 12 in the first two quarters, respectively. Added Galloway, “Our focus now is to make sure this becomes an expectation. We will get back to work tomorrow to prepare for the number one team in the country at Durham next week.” Jacksonville opened up scoring with a pair of goals from senior Eric Applegate (13:33) and Will Hendrick (11:48) before Navy could find an answer at the 9:29 mark. The Dolphins took a 3-1 lead shortly after, as Forbes connected with Mattushik in transition off the faceoff just six seconds later. The teams traded goals for the remainder of the period, but it was all Jacksonville in the second quarter. Applegate had a hand in three of the next four goals, finding the back of the net himself at 13:57 and 9:06 and dishing to Mattushik with 11:47 to go before halftime. The underclassmen delivered JU’s final tally of the quarter when sophomore Brett Reilly found freshman Jeremy Winston to give the Dolphins a 10-4 lead at the half. Only two goals were scored in the third, with Navy’s Ryan Wade assisting on both, though it was enough motivation for the Dolphins as Mattushik (12:24) and senior Shawn Ewert (12:08) buried passes from senior McLean Chicquen and Forbes, respectively, just 16 seconds apart to add an exclamation point on the victory. Forbes finished the day with 13 ground balls, while he, Reilly, and Chicquen handed out a pair of assists. In goal, junior Hunter Sells recorded six saves and the win. Wade and Christian Daniel led the Midshipmen offensively with a goal and two assists each, while Ryan Kern totaled 14 saves between the pipes for Navy. The Dolphins hit the road next weekend and face No. 1 Duke on Saturday, Feb. 10 at 1 p.m.