Box Score

ST. MARY'S CITY, Md. -- The 10th-ranked Christopher Newport field hockey team captured its 12th straight victory as the Captains upended St. Mary's, 2-0, during a Capital Athletic Conference bout on Saturday afternoon at Seahawk Stadium.

During the contest, Jordan Snider and Hilary St. Mary both scored to give the Captains all the breathing room they would need. In a stifling defensive effort, Christopher Newport clamped down on the Seahawk attack and limited the hosts to just one shot on the way to the team's sixth shutout of the year.

With the victory, the Captains move to 12-0 on the season, including 2-0 in conference action. The setback snaps St. Mary's seven-game winning streak and drops the squad to 7-3, including 0-1 in league play.

From the outset, the Captains established the tempo and never let the Seahawks find a rhythm. Although much of the beginning of the game was played towards the middle of the field, Christopher Newport eventually broke free around the 10-minute mark. After a bullet by Kelsey Clark was turned away with a nice defensive save, the visitors continued to attack.

Less than a minute after their first shot, the Captains earned a penalty corner. On the play, Belle Tunstall inserted the ball to Snider, who used a gorgeous aerial scoop to bang a shot past SMC's goalie for her second score of the season.

With an early lead, Christopher Newport continued to poke at the St. Mary's defense. Although the Seahawks were able to withstand the surge for long stretches, including a pair of saves by Christy Bishop, the hosts eventually broke again. Less than six minutes before halftime, Shelby Judkins blistered a bullet towards the left post. In perfect position, St. Mary quickly deflected the ball and sent it screaming into an open space for her first goal of the season.

After closing out the first half with a nice run, the Captains remained in control following the break. The squad unloaded the first five shots of the new period, but three squirted wide while Bishop swatted away a pair. Later, St. Mary's responded with their first scoring opportunity of the game, but Bailey Lien stoned the Seahawks' lone on-target shot to sustain the 2-0 lead.

With time running down, Christopher Newport never let the Seahawks even attempt a comeback bid. Following the host's only attempt of the game, CNU controlled the ball and posted the final two shots of the contest just before time expired to cap off the two-goal victory.

Overall, CNU held a 16-1 lead in shots and a 9-3 edge in corners. Bishop finished with four saves for the Seahawks, while Lien notched one to earn the shutout victory.

Christopher Newport will be back in action next Saturday when the squad heads to Dover, Delaware for a 9 a.m. match-up with Wesley.

---CNU---