NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Despite a big game from Matthew Crist and a gritty defensive effort, the Christopher Newport men's lacrosse team dropped a hard-fought 8-7 decision to Mary Washington during the first round of the Capital Athletic Conference Tournament on a windy Wednesday afternoon at Captains Turf Field.

Against the Eagles, Crist scored twice, including the equalizer with just over four minutes remaining in regulation. Unfortunately, Mary Washington was able to battle back and drove home the clinching goal with two minutes left to seal the victory. With the win, UMW improves to 8-7 on the season and advances to the CAC semifinals. Christopher Newport bows out with an 11-5 mark.

Along with Crist's offensive heroics, the freshman standout also matched his season-high with four ground balls. Randy Foster contributed a pair of points as well, while Brandon Moloney anchored the defense with three caused turnovers and five ground balls. Nick Kirschke also won 12 of his 15 faceoff attempts, and Matt Hayden contributed nine saves between the pipes.

After Christopher Newport won the regular season match-up between the two programs, Mary Washington came out firing on Wednesday. The Eagles pieced together a pair of sustained offensive sets in the early going. Although Hayden clamped down on the first run, the visitors opened the scoring less than five minutes into regulation.

Staring at a quick deficit, the Captains battled back. With their first solid look of the game, the Captains settled in on the offensive end. After excellent ball movement around the zone, Garrison Ernst took control and burst through the defense before unleashing a rocket on the run to knot the game at one. Just over two minutes later, a great heads-up play by Casey Cook gave CNU the lead.

Although an initial hit by the Eagles dislodged the ball deep in the UMW zone, Cook ran in and secured the roller. With no room to work, he flipped the ball to Joey Rolando with a backwards scoop. Taking the feed in space, Rolando fired a pellet to the back of the net to give Christopher Newport a 2-1 advantage with six minutes left in the first quarter.

Continuing the back-and-forth affair, the Eagles retaliated to knot the game at two before CNU landed another blow. This time, the defense stepped up as Hayden stoned a shot before Thomas St. John hustled over to the far sideline to gain possession. After a successful clear, Foster rolled around the zone and pulled the defense with him. With the Eagles crashing, Foster fed back to Dave Magdeburger, who was wide open on the far side and quickly uncorked a bullet to retake a 3-2 lead.

Unfortunately, Mary Washington found an answer with less than 30 seconds left in the quarter. In a sign of things to come, Chris Garcia slipped free and found an opening for his first goal of the game to tie the score at three.

After a hectic first quarter, the pace settled down in the second stanza. Both defenses stepped up with suffocating efforts. Moloney forced a big turnover to stifle Mary Washington's first run before Hayden chipped in with a key save to keep the score tied. Equally as sturdy on the other side, the Eagles limited the CNU offense to a few off-balance shots before Colin Bressan added a save on a rip by Foster.

Following eight minutes worth of defensive dominance, the UMW attack was the first to find its footing. The visitors broke the tie with seven minutes left in the half. Although Brooks Billings shot back and peppered the Eagles with a rapid-fire assault, Mary Washington's defense continued to hang tough and blanked CNU. After the defensive stand, the visitors tossed one last goal on the board to snatch a 5-3 edge entering the break.

Halftime paid dividends for the Captains as the squad looked reinvigorated early in the second half. Foster got things rolling as he dipped and dodged around a pair of defenders before driving home his first goal. Less than two minutes later, Cook fed to Will Geise, who cut hard and floated through the zone before muscling a shot past the defense to tie the game at five.

After getting back on even ground, CNU stepped up defensively. Frustrating Mary Washington, the hosts cracked down on back-to-back clear attempts as Rolando forced the first turnover before Geise de-sticked an Eagle with a crushing blow. Unfortunately, UMW remained vigilant and eventually broke through the defense and stole the lead back with eight minutes remaining in the third.

Immediately after the goal, Kirschke won his seventh straight faceoff before Crist retaliated on the offensive end. After securing the ground ball, the first-year standout rolled to back of the zone. With a one-on-one situation, Crist curled around the near post and spun his defender to the ground with a devastating cutback before using a soft touch to cap off the play with his first goal of the contest.

Following the offensive outburst, the defense dug in again with a breathtaking seven-minute stand. Shutting down the Eagle attack, Moloney, Hayden, Brenden Dwyer, and Harrison Drier all forced turnovers. Hayden also added a pair of saves during the run to keep the game knotted at six entering the final period.

Still pressuring CNU, Mary Washington was eventually able to break through early in the fourth quarter to take the lead. Later, the Eagles looked primed to extend their advantage, but Hayden stoned a pair of shots and Patrick Miller blocked another before scooping up the loose ball to stymie a UMW surge.

Although the defense continued to do its job, the offense needed to find its footing. Finally, with just over four minutes remaining, the hosts found an opening. Controlling possession, John Thompson worked around the far side of the field before Crist broke towards the cage. Showing off his precision, Thompson hit Crist on the doorstep. After taking control, the freshman went top-shelf with a laser that just wiggled its way under the crossbar to tie the score at seven.

Shortly thereafter, Christopher Newport looked to take the lead. After Kirschke won the ensuing faceoff, CNU controlled possession. Even after the ball was jostled loose, Magdeburger laid out an Eagle with a bone-crushing hit before Crist grabbed the roller. Later, Thompson snapped off a shot, but Mary Washington's goalie was up to the challenge and made the save.

Less than 30 seconds later, Garcia forced a turnover for Mary Washington and broke loose. Eerily similar to his first goal, the senior snuck free and the defense struggled to catch up. With a breakaway, he punched home his second goal of the game, which gave the Eagles an 8-7 lead with less than three minutes remaining.

Still battling, Kirschke won the next faceoff and Moloney corralled the ground ball after a vicious scrum. Following a timeout, Crist just missed retying the game after he banked a bullet off the pipe. Unfortunately, Mary Washington was able to gain possession and clear the zone before calling a timeout with 98 seconds left.

Unfazed by the turn of events, the Captains settled in. Needing to force a turnover, the defense stepped up with a huge play. Drier swapped his short-stick for a long pole, and the junior teamed up with Moloney on a spectacular double-team. The two standouts drove an Eagle attacker over to the sideline and eventually forced a turnover to give the hosts a chance with a minute remaining.

Sadly, last-minute heroics were not in the cards for CNU. Following a timeout, Magdeburger blistered a rope that sailed high before Mary Washington pounced on a loose ball at the top of the zone and ran out the clock to steal the victory.

Overall, Christopher Newport held a 41-32 edge in shots and a 41-29 lead in ground balls. The Captains also won 14 of the game's 19 faceoffs, but Mary Washington was able to capitalize on its limited opportunities to advance in the CAC Tournament.

---CNU---