Box Score
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The seventh-ranked Christopher Newport field hockey team extended its winning streak to 10 games in dramatic fashion as the Captains overcame a late deficit in regulation before capturing an exhilarating 3-2 shootout victory over No. 19 Catholic on Wednesday evening at Cardinal Stadium.

Lindsay Hendricks scored with less than nine minutes left in the second half to knot the game and send the bout into overtime. After a defensive struggle in the extra sessions, CNU put its offensive firepower on full display in the shootout as Caitlin Cahill and Marlene Lichty both converted their attempts to secure the victory.

Just as dominant on the defensive end, Jamie Dowling was sensational throughout the contest. During regulation, she posted seven saves before excelling in the shootout. Facing five Cardinals during the bonus session, she stoned four attempts to give the CNU offense just enough leeway to finish the job.

With the victory, Christopher Newport moves to 12-1 on the season, while the setback drops Catholic to 9-5. The overtime victory also marks the second in the last four games for the Captains after the squad upended No. 5 Mary Washington, 3-2, in double overtime last Saturday.

After Hendricks sent the game into overtime with a bullet to the back of the cage late in the second half, Catholic came out firing in the extra session. Looking to end the game quickly, the Cardinals earned a corner and uncorked three shots in rapid succession during the first three minutes of overtime. Despite the onslaught, CNU continued to hold tough as the defense took care of the first two shots before Dowling stoned the third.

After withstanding Catholic's initial surge, the two squads traded runs, but neither one paid off as the defenses stunted a pair of shots. Later, after a back-and-forth battle in the middle of the field, the Cardinals orchestrated one last run. In the waning moments of the first overtime, the hosts fired two shots, but Dowling shrugged off the first before the second went wide.

Entering the second overtime, CUA once again proved to be the aggressor early on. In the first two minutes of action, the hosts were awarded a pair of penalty corners. Despite the opportunities, Catholic's first shot of the period went wide before the second one was blocked by the Captain defense.

Following the Cardinals' early run, Christopher Newport picked up the pace in the latter half of the second overtime. CNU charged into the Catholic zone twice, and Lichty got off a pair of shots, but both attempts went just wide. Later, Marcy Hoath pounded one on-target during the waning moments of the period, but Megan Comunale stoned the blast to send the game to a shootout.

In the bonus session, which features an eight-second, one-on-one battle between an attacker and the opposing goalie, Comunale and Dowling came out strong. The Catholic keeper shut down attempts by Shelby Judkins and Hendricks, while Dowling denied Colleen Harwood and Catherine Mirsky.

Looking to break the dry spell, the Captains turned to their All-American as Cahill quickly came through with a rocket to the back of the cage that put CNU up by one. After Dowling shut down Maura Campbell's attempt for CUA, Lichty kept things rolling for the Captains. With a sensational move, the junior created an opening and unloaded a blast that gave the squad a two-goal lead.

Although Mirsky capitalized on her second attempt to put Catholic on the board, Dowling would not let the hosts even the score. With the Captain senior serving as a wall in the front of the cage, Rebecca Lukaszczyk could not get a clean look and eventually sent a shot off the post, which sealed the victory and sent the CNU sideline into frenzied jubilation.

The shootout victory was the first for the Captains since the NCAA adopted the new format this season. The setback is the second of its kind for Catholic this year after the team dropped its first shootout opportunity during a 4-3 loss against No. 2 Salisbury on September 19.

Following a delay that postponed the start of the game, Christopher Newport looked strong. Dowling withstood two early shots by the Cardinals before Allie Hackbarth opened the scoring. After collecting her first career goal on Sunday against Wesley, the sophomore standout quickly added her second with a blistering rocket just over five minutes into regulation.

After that, Catholic went back on the attack. The hosts roped three straight shots, including back-to-back tracers that Dowling swatted away. Later, Comunale stepped up for the Cardinals, batting aside three attempts by the Captains before her offense broke through.

Just under two minutes before halftime, Catholic stormed into the CNU zone. After earning a penalty corner, Maura Campbell slid a nice pass to Hayley Wright, who snuck a ball just outside of Dowling's reach, which knotted the game at one.

After breaking through just before halftime, Catholic tried to carry the momentum over into the second half. The Cardinal attack pressured CNU from the outset, earning a corner and unloading a pair of shots during the early part of the period. Despite the surge, the Captain defense held strong and kept the game knotted at one.

In response to Catholic's run, Hackbarth came back and roped a bullet to break up the host's roll, but the Cardinals held tough and stormed back. Following an off-target shot and a laser that was kicked aside by Dowling, CUA found an opening. Wright dished a cross to Taylor Elliott, who quickly ripped a shot that got past the Captain keeper and gave the team a 2-1 lead at 42:22.

With their winning streak on the line, Christopher Newport fired back. Cahill tested Comunale with a pair of shots, but the Cardinal goalie remained in command. Later, the Captains uncorked three more rockets during a four-minute span, but once again, the CUA defense was up to the task.

As the clock slowly ticked down, Hendricks stepped up. After CNU earned a penalty corner with just under nine minutes to go in regulation, the Captain senior settled into the zone, found a little breathing room, and ripped a one-timer past Comunale, which evened the game at two and set up Christopher Newport's late-game heroics.

During the contest, Catholic held a modest 26-22 lead in shots and a slight 10-8 advantage in corners. Dowling finished with seven saves for CNU, while Comunale had nine stops for the Cardinals.

Christopher Newport will get back to work on Saturday when the squad heads to Harrisonburg, Virginia for a 4 p.m. showdown with Eastern Mennonite. The following day, CNU will wrap up its road swing with a 2:30 p.m. contest against Washington & Lee on Sunday.

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