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SALISBURY, Md. -- The fifth-seeded Christopher Newport men's soccer team scored two goals against one of the top defensive teams in the nation Wednesday afternoon to capture a 2-0 shutout victory in the Capital Athletic Conference Semifinals. The Captains (15-3-4) advance to the CAC Championship game for the first time after ousting 9th-ranked and top-seeded Salisbury University (12-1-5). 

CNU becomes just the second team this season to score more than one goal against the tough Salisbury defense, as the vaunted Captains offense had the upperhand in the CAC Tournament matchup. The second goal would prove to be an unecessary insurance goal as the CNU defense held strong as well, allowing just four total shots and only two on-target. 

The eventual game-winning goal would come early in the game, as sophomore Harry Nodwell cracked a blistering shot into the net just 14:24 into the contest. The Captains offense had made several runs at Salisbury keeper Drew Staedeli, but were turned away until the 15th minute when junior forward Ryan Balfour set up Nodwell on the right side. Balfour drew a pair of defenders and bounced a pass to the right where Nodwell got everything he had behind the shot, powering his attempt off the bottom half of the crossbar and in for the score. 

The tally was Nodwell's fifth of the season while Balfour picked up his fourth assist. The strike was also the second earliest goal of the season allowed by Salisbury, behind N.C. Wesleyan's goal in the 7th minute early in the year. 

With the lead in hand, the Captains offense continued to pressure, and controlled the majority of the game. CNU outshot Salisbury, 11-2, in the first half, and kept the pace up in the second half with a 7-2 edge in total shots after halftime. In all, the 18-4 edge saw CNU dominate possession and force Staedeli to make five saves.

Late in the second half, the Captains still led by only one and pressed for a second, potentially back-breaking tally. It nearly came with 10:33 remaining when a penalty kick was called after a foul in the box on a free kick. Alec Faulkner sent a pretty arcing pass into the left side of the box where Balfour connected for what looked like the second goal of the game. Instead, a foul was called and a PK awarded for the Captains. Salisbury's junior netminder made a big stop on the attempt by Sean Christein. 

Unable to grow the lead on that chance, the second goal would finally come with just under seven minutes remaining. After the home team went down a man due to a red card, the Captains offense pushed into the box again, where a defender committed a foul on a potential shot attempt. This time, senior Alex Makumbi made sure the shot counted, driving a hard attempt into the upper ninety. 

With the game in the waning minutes, Salisbury was unable to cut into the Captains lead and CNU picked up the shutout to advance to the CAC Championship Game. It was just Salisbury's second loss of the season, as the Sea Gulls remain poised for a potential at-large berth into the NCAA Tournament after a successful 12-2-5 mark this season. 

Seven different players had shots on-goal for the Captains as the offense was spread around. In net, junior Sam Lesko earned the clean sheet by making a pair of saves, picking up his fourth solo shutout of the year. 

CNU will take on the winner of the second CAC Semifinal, set to begin play at 6:00 pm. Second-seeded Penn State Harrisburg hosts sixth-seeded St. Mary's (Md.) with the winner advancing to Saturday's title game hosted by the highest seed remaining. 

UPDATE: Second-seeded Penn State Harrisburg captured the victory in the other CAC Semifinal and will host Saturday's Championship Game at 2:00 pm. Live stats will be available.