Box Score
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – In a thrilling top-20 showdown, the 14th-ranked Christopher Newport field hockey team took down #19 Lynchburg, 1-0, on a second-half goal by Lindsay Hendricks as CNU extended its winning streak to six games on a sun-splashed Sunday afternoon at Captains Turf Field.

After a defensive struggle in the first half, Hendricks broke the deadlock after drilling home a rocket just five minutes into the second period. On the defensive end, senior goalkeeper Jamie Dowling was a wall in the cage, turning away eight shots for her second shutout of the season. Chelsea Hines also had a sensational defensive save to keep Lynchburg off the scoreboard.

With the victory, CNU moves to 8-1 on the season. The setback snaps Lynchburg's four-game roll and puts them at 8-3 on the year.

As they so often do, the Captains set the tone in the early going. During a one-minute span at the outset of the game, the hosts earned three quick corners and unloaded three shots, but the Lynchburg defense stood up against the onslaught and kept the game scoreless.

With CNU setting the tempo, the Hornets picked up their pace in the middle of the first half. Lindsay Leonard fired two lasers, but Dowling was up to the task and kicked aside both shots. Later in the period, Leonard came back again with a vengeance. The senior attacker tested Dowling three more times during a six-minute span, but once again, the Captain keeper stoned every attempt.

Shortly after Dowling sent back Leonard's fifth shot of the half, the Hornet fired her sixth. This time, she cut left, found an opening, and had a clean look at the cage. With a chance to break the scoreless deadlock, she ripped a blast at 27:07. Refusing to back down, Hines filled the gap, got low, and cleaned up with a phenomenal stick save.

As Lynchburg continued to pressure the CNU zone, the Captains got a break. After corralling the ball, a few quick passes set up Taylor Young with a clean breakaway nearing the end of the first half. Streaking down the field, the sophomore standout had some room before Lynchburg's Hannah Myers came charging out of the cage, confronted the Captain, and made a sliding tackle to shut down the run.

After withstanding a CNU breakaway, the Hornets kept up the frenetic pace of the first half and responded with two minutes left. Katie Kline took control of the ball near midfield with open spaces in front of her. In a good position, she cruised towards the Captain zone before Marcy Hoath caught up and cut her off to silence the Lynchburg break.

Following a scoreless first period, the defenses continued to set the standard early in the second half. Lynchburg clamped down on an early corner attempt before Shelby Judkins made a great stop on a Hornet run just four minutes after halftime.

With both teams struggling to score, CNU finally found an opening to break the deadlock. At 40:52, Belle Tunstall helped set-up Hendricks, who crashed down and blistered a bullet into the back of the cage to light up the scoreboard.

Staring at a one-goal deficit, Lynchburg earned three corners and fired a shot during a four-minute run, but the Captain defense held strong. Later, Christopher Newport shot back. Once again, Hendricks was in the middle of the action as the senior sensation broke free. With a spotless run into the zone, she made a gorgeous cut to juke Myers and find some more room. From there, she unloaded a laser, but Johanna Agustin slid across the front of the cage and got her stick on the ball to break up the attempt at 47:13.

From that point on, Lynchburg remained mostly on the attack. Looking to even the score, Leonard and Nicole Marburger tossed a pair of shots at the 50-minute mark, but Dowling set aside both attempts. Keeping the ball in the Captain zone, Colleen Dore eventually tested CNU's goalkeeper again, but Dowling refused to break.

With time running down, Jordan Snider stepped up. After Lynchburg uncorked two shots during a 30-second span, the Captain junior broke up another attempt at the top of the circle and cleared the zone. Later, nearing the final minute of regulation, she made a great stick tackle along the sideline to stifle another run and help set up CNU's offense.

After withstanding the Hornet assault, the Captains finally broke free and settled into the LC zone. With the clock approaching zeros, CNU earned one last corner and let regulation run out to finish off the 1-0 win.

Overall, Lynchburg held a 15-7 lead in shots, but only one of CNU's attempts was off-target. The Hornets also held a modest 6-5 edge in corners. Despite those advantages, the hosts were guided by a sensational group effort on the defensive end to shut out the Hornets for the second straight meeting. The Captains also blanked Lynchburg by an identical 1-0 score in 2010.

Christopher Newport will remain at home for a pair of games next weekend. The Captains will battle seventh-ranked Mary Washington on Saturday at 1 p.m. before taking on Bridgewater on Sunday at 2 p.m.

---CNU---