Box Score

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – In a battle of unbeatens, the sixth-ranked Christopher Newport field hockey team came out on top as Kelsey Clark's first-half goal was all CNU needed to upend Virginia Wesleyan, 1-0, in a defensive battle at Captains Turf Field on a brisk Wednesday evening.

Just over 10 minutes into the contest, Clark scored her fifth goal in the last three games following an assist by Lauren Cheatham to put the Captains ahead for good. The defense did the rest as the team recorded its third shutout of the season.

The win moves Christopher Newport to 7-0 on the year, while the setback drops Virginia Wesleyan to 3-1. It marks CNU's seventh straight victory against its local rivals.

After the Captains pieced together a few early scoring opportunities, including a pair of penalty corners, the hosts wasted little time lighting up the scoreboard. At 10:32, Cheatham drove hard into the Virginia Wesleyan zone. Pushing the ball to the far side of the field, she dished back to Clark, who settled on the other side of the circle. After scoring four times over the weekend, the reigning CAC Co-Player of the Week knew exactly what to do and unloaded a blast to the back of the cage.

With a quick 1-0 advantage, the Captains continued to pressure the Marlin defense but had little luck finding any space. Over the next 18 minutes of action, CNU mustered four shots, but three sailed wide and VWC's Lindsay Baker stoned the fourth.

As halftime closed in, Christopher Newport made one final run. Keeping the ball on Virginia Wesleyan's half of the field during the final seven minutes, the Captains peppered the visitors with three on-target shots. Unfortunately, Baker batted away a pair before Tanya Puccio clamped down on the third with a solid defensive save to keep the Marlins' deficit at one entering the break.

In the second half, CNU's offense continued to push the tempo. Ripping shot-after-shot, the hosts pounded the opposition but came away empty-handed. Once again, Baker stood up against the onslaught and made five saves, including three on a rapid-fire attack during a six-second surge in the early part of the period.

After the squad's defense came through with a nice effort, Virginia Wesleyan's offense orchestrated a few scoring opportunities of its own. Just over 10 minutes into the new period, the Marlins had their cleanest attempt of the game. Asiah Allen deflected a bullet from the top of the circle that seemed destined for open spaces. Unflinching in the cage, Bailey Lien stepped forward and swatted the deflection out of the air to keep the opposition scoreless.

Later, after Lien made a second stop to keep the cage clean, her defense took over. Chelsea Hines and Shelby Judkins were rock solid along the back line and kept the Marlins from even attempting a shot during large portions of the second half. The CNU midfield also played suffocating defense to keep the ball in Virginia Wesleyan's zone for much of the period.

Looking for some additional breathing room, the Captains continued to poke at the VWC defense but could never capitalize. Baker stoned some clean looks by CNU while a few other rollers went just wide during the tail end of the game.

Fortunately, the squad never needed a second score as the defense dominated from there. Eventually, Moira Wright came through with the final stand as the sophomore posted a nice tackle on the near side of the field to cut off the Marlins' final surge just before the horn sounded to ice the one-goal victory.

In the end, CNU held a 26-4 edge in shots and a 15-1 lead in penalty corners. Lien earned her sixth victory and third shutout win for the Captains, while Baker finished with a game-high 14 saves for Virginia Wesleyan.

Christopher Newport will cap off its five-game homestand on Saturday when the squad hosts Eastern Mennonite at noon.

---CNU---