SALEM, Va. -- Behind another scintillating defensive performance, the 16th-ranked Christopher Newport field hockey team picked up its fifth consecutive victory as the Captains blanked Rhodes, 2-0, during a neutral-site bout at Roanoke's Kerr Stadium.
 
Facing the nation's top-ranked offense, which entered the contest averaging 6.29 goals-per-game, CNU was up to the challenge. Suffocating Rhodes' attack throughout the game, the Captains extended their shutout streak to four straight contests, marking the longest run by the program since the 2007 squad blanked eight consecutive opponents.
 
Just a day after setting the program's all-time wins record, Bailey Lien led the way on the back end as the junior standout made seven saves, including four in the second half. Meanwhile, Christopher Newport's corner defense also stepped up and shut down 16 attempts by the Lynx.
 
On the offensive end, Madison Doss and Alexa Weaver gave the Captains all the scoring they would need with a pair of first-half strikes.
 
With the victory, Christopher Newport improves to 7-1 on the season. Rhodes falls to 5-3.
 
From the outset, the Captains established the pace as the team roped the first three shots of the contest, including a pair of bullets by Lisa Murphy. Later, Rhodes retaliated and sniped back-to-back on-target attempts, but Lien stoned both. Brittan Muir, Cori Black, and Kana Hashigami all helped clean up on the defensive end as well before the CNU attack found its rhythm.
 
In the 21st minute, CNU earned two straight corners. Following the second one, Samantha Snider found Doss, who punched home her first goal of the season. Just over seven minutes later, the Captains extended their lead following another corner.
 
In the 28th minute, Snider inserted the ball from the back line. Settled on the circle, Weaver eventually took control of the roller. With a blast, she fired a shot through the Rhodes' defense for her fifth goal of the season and second of the week to nail down a 2-0 advantage.
 
Staring at a two-goal deficit, the Lynx tried to respond. Right before halftime, the squad whistled a pair of shots, but the first squirted wide before the second was stoned by Lien. Then, after the break, Rhodes continued to pressure the CNU defense, but Lien made another stop to keep the squad off the scoreboard.
 
After that point, the two teams continued to trade runs throughout the second half, but both defenses held strong. Rhodes' Laura Eckelkamp made a pair of stops off back-to-back shots by Weaver and Rachael Allshouse, while CNU's back line clamped down on two corner attempts and Lien added her fifth save to keep the ledger clean entering the final 10 minutes of regulation.
 
With their backs against the wall, the Lynx tried to claw back into the game with a furious rally. Earning a seemingly endless string of corners during the waning moments of regulation, Rhodes had opportunities to break through. However, Lien continued to stand tall between the pipes with two more saves while the entire CNU defense buckled down and withstood the onslaught to preserve the shutout.
 
Overall, Rhodes held a 16-10 edge in corners during the game, while CNU managed to out-shoot the Lynx, 10-9. Murphy led the Captains with three shots during the contest, while Weaver and Carol Thompson had two apiece. On the defensive end, Lien earned the win with her seven saves, while Eckelkamp took the loss despite making five stops for RC.
 
Christopher Newport will be back in action on September 30 when the Captains return home for a 7 p.m. contest against No. 12 Catholic.
 
---CNU---