NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Behind an explosive second half effort, the Christopher Newport women's lacrosse team erased a three-goal deficit and used a tremendous push to put the game away as CNU took down Mary Washington, 15-12, during a key Capital Athletic Conference battle on a sun-soaked Wednesday afternoon at Captains Turf Field.

During the contest, Erin Callahan and Meaghan Galvin posted five goals apiece, while Galvin also contributed a pair of assists. Additionally, Catie Chess registered a hat-trick of her own and Kylie Chaplin tacked on three assists to help pace the offensive attack.

On the defensive side, Hanna Slough made six saves, while Kirsten Mendelsohn forced three turnovers. Tess D'Arcy also cleaned up with a team-high three ground balls.

With the victory, Christopher Newport improves to 6-5 on the season, including 3-1 in CAC action. The win also marks the program's first-ever triumph over Mary Washington. The setback drops the Eagles to 6-5 with a 2-2 mark in league play.

Following a back-and-forth battle in the first half, the Captains found themselves trailing 7-6 entering halftime. After the break, Mary Washington tossed two quick goals on the board to snatch a 9-6 lead with 24 minutes remaining in regulation. Needing a response, Carolyn Query called for a timeout, and the stoppage immediately paid off.

After regrouping on the sidelines, Christopher Newport found its rhythm. First, Chaplin controlled the ensuing draw before dishing to Galvin, who fired a rope to start the comeback.  Just over a minute later, Galvin served as the facilitator as she hit Callahan in stride to pull the hosts within one at 9-8.

Sensing a shift in momentum, Mary Washington called for a timeout, but the break did nothing to slow down the CNU attack. Immediately after the stoppage, Chaplin controlled another draw before Galvin earned a free-position attempt and whistled a dagger to the back of the net to knot the game at nine.

Back on even ground, the two teams traded blows during an epic battle in the middle of the period. First, Mary Washington retook the lead before Callahan and Colleen Bourgal slammed home back-to-back eight-meter attempts to give the Captains their first lead of the second half with 18 minutes remaining in regulation. Although another quick strike by the Eagles knotted the game again, the Captains regrouped, settled in, and pieced together a run for the ages.

Before the offense could go back to work, the defense stepped up with a breathtaking stand. During a one-minute window, the visitors earned four straight free-position attempts, but the Captains withstood the surge. Needing to regain control, D'Arcy came through with a momentum-turning interception to take possession and clear the zone.

After settling in on the offensive end, Callahan broke the deadlock. Following a beautiful set-up by Chaplin, Callahan dipped and dodged while bursting through several Eagle defenders on the way to a huge goal, which gave CNU a 12-11 advantage. Two minutes later, after Kedron Walsh secured the draw, Chess capped off her hat-trick with a rocket off an eight-meter shot to snatch a two-goal lead with 12 minutes remaining.

Once again, Mary Washington managed to respond and cut the deficit back down to one, but CNU never wavered. First, the defense made amends with another terrific stand. Mariah Ginebra frustrated the Eagles behind the cage with a great ride before forcing a pass. At that point, Mendelsohn took over on the far side of the field as the junior standout stripped an attacker and grabbed the roller before clearing the zone.

Back in control, the Captains struck quickly. Chaplin sent a feed to Doering, who ran past a defender and beat the goalie with a low liner to grab a 14-12 lead. Two minutes later, Callahan added the final nail. With time running down, she burst into the offensive zone with a clean run following a UMW foul. Staring at a wall of defenders, she elevated and hammered home her fifth goal of the contest.

With the clock becoming an ally, the Captains showed some heads-up play to cap off the historic victory. After the Eagles pulled their goalie, daring the hosts to score in hopes of regaining control on an ensuing draw, CNU never took the bait. Playing unselfish ball, the squad ran off crucial seconds and evaded the Mary Washington defense with elusive running and crisp passing.

Although the Eagles were eventually able to gain control in the waning moments, Mendelsohn forced one last turnover and battled a host of Eagles to keep the ball on the ground before Slough scooped it up as the final horn sounded.

During the contest, CNU held a slim 30-29 edge in shots and a 17-11 advantage in ground balls. The hosts also controlled 18 of the game's 28 draws to help pull out the victory.

Before the thrilling second-half slugfest, the Captains found themselves trailing early in regulation. Mary Washington scored the first three goals of the game before CNU whistled for a timeout. In a sign of things to come, the stoppage worked perfectly. Callahan lit up the scoreboard after charging in off a free-position attempt. Later, Chess spun a defender after securing a long feed from Galvin to cut the deficit down to one before sprinting past another Eagle on the way to her second goal and a 3-3 tie.

Shortly thereafter, Galvin gave the hosts their first lead with back-to-back eight-meter shots. First, she went top-shelf with a bullet before whipping in a side-armed rocket to snatch a 5-3 advantage. Later, the sophomore sensation added another free-position strike, but Mary Washington closed out the half on a 4-1 run to grab a 7-6 halftime lead.

Despite the deficit, the hosts battled back with a spectacular second-half run to secure the win.

Christopher Newport will be back in action on Saturday when the squad heads to Lynchburg for a 3 p.m. showdown.

---CNU---