Box Score

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. -- Despite two goals from Garrison Ernst and Will Geise and another double-digit save performance by Andy McGregor, the Christopher Newport men's lacrosse team dropped its third straight game with an 11-8 setback to Virginia Wesleyan at Foster Field on Wednesday evening.

With the loss, CNU falls to 5-7 on the season, while the Marlins move to 5-4. VWC has now won six of the seven all-time meetings between the two programs.

During the contest, McGregor made 13 stops for the Captains, marking his fifth double-digit save performance of the season and his third in the last three games. Geise and Ernst led the offensive attack, while Parker Thompson chipped in with a goal and caused turnover in a well-rounded effort.

After the Captains fell behind 3-0 following a hiccup in the first period, the squad battled back in the second. McGregor settled down in goal, stoning a pair of darts by the Marlins. Later, after Teddy Pekalski forced a turnover, CNU went on the attack.

Testing the Virginia Wesleyan defense from nearly every angle, the hosts withstood the assault for a brief time before finally breaking. After Corey Bauer made back-to-back saves for the Marlins, Ernst took control of the ball and buried a bullet in the corner of the net to put the Captains on the board at 8:43.

Still down by two, Christopher Newport continued its comeback. Keeping the pressure on the Marlins, the squad uncorked a barrage of shots in the middle of the period. Although the squad came away empty-handed during that surge, CNU eventually broke free again late in the first half.

With just under three minutes remaining before halftime, McGregor made a stop and used a nice outlet pass to start a fast break. Jake Myers took control, cruised right up the center of the field, and blistered a rocket through the VWC defense to pull the team back within one heading into the break.

Although the Captains ended the first half with all of the momentum, the Marlins grabbed it back in the third period. In the first two minutes of the quarter, the hosts tucked a pair of shots into the net following a pair of assists by Josh Currier. Staring at a three-goal deficit once again, McGregor withstood a bevy of bullets during the middle of the period but Tim Gunn eventually found an opening at the nine-minute mark to secure a 6-2 edge for Virginia Wesleyan.

Looking for an answer to VWC's second three-goal surge of the game, Christopher Newport found it at 7:11. Following an initial shot by CNU, Alex Barber dished to Billy Crist, who wound up and unloaded his fifth goal of the season to pull the Captains back within three at 6-3.

Hoping to continue its comeback bid, CNU continued to pepper the Virginia Wesleyan defense, but the Marlins held tough. Bauer stopped three straight shots by the Captains to keep his three-goal lead heading into the fourth.

Although Christopher Newport was turned away late in the third, the squad kept the pressure on in the fourth. After Mason Barry won the opening faceoff in the period, Thompson ripped a laser past Bauer to bring the Captains back within two at 6-4. Unfortunately, Virginia Wesleyan had an immediate answer as Currier found an opening for the Marlins just 14 seconds later.

Down by three again, CNU kept the back-and-forth battle going after Geise lined a one-timer into the net at 12:28. Refusing to let the Captains gain any traction, Mikey Connors responded with his third goal of the game just two minutes later to give VWC an 8-5 edge.

Despite the Marlins' best attempts to stymie Christopher Newport's comeback bid, the visitors continued to chip away. Less than a minute after Connors' goal, Kyle Pasta struck for CNU with a tracer through the VWC defense. After Barry won the ensuing faceoff, the Captains made another run. Although the squad's first two attempts were turned away, Ernst came through again with his second goal to pull the team within one at 8-7.

With CNU showing some late life, Virginia Wesleyan clamped down and refused to let their guests pull even. As time slowly wound down, Connors chipped in with his fourth score to give the hosts some breathing room before Currier added the final two nails with a goal and an assist during the waning moments of the game. Although Geise tacked on his second tally with seconds remaining, it was not enough to overcome the squad's deficit.

Overall, CNU actually held a 41-38 edge in shots but trailed 39-34 in ground balls. Virginia Wesleyan won 13 of the 22 faceoffs during the game.

Christopher Newport will return to action on Saturday when the squad heads to Goucher for a 1 p.m. showdown with the Gophers at Beldon Field.

---CNU---