CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- Rachael Allshouse capped off a spectacular week with a three-point outing, while Carol Thompson erupted for a pair of goals in the second half to carry the Christopher Newport field hockey team past Rhodes, 3-1, during a neutral-site battle on a sun-splashed Sunday afternoon at St. Anne's-Belfield.
 
Registering her fifth goal of the week, Allshouse slammed home an equalizer at the end of the first half before Thompson punched in a pair after the break to seal the victory. Meanwhile, on the defensive end, the Captains swarmed the field and badgered the Lynx throughout the contest. Bailey Lien led the way and eventually finished with seven saves to earn the victory.
 
With the win, Christopher Newport improves to 12-3 overall. The setback drops Rhodes to 12-2.
 
After travel delays pushed the game back an hour and forced an abbreviated pregame warm-up, CNU shrugged off the early-morning issues and pieced together a relentless defensive effort to open the action. Rachel Cooke got things rolling as the freshman swatted a pass out of the air and put pressure on Rhodes' first corner attempt to break up the play.
 
Later, with the Lynx continuing to attack, Lien stoned a shot off another corner attempt before Brittan Muir chased down a breakaway on the near side of the field to end a separate threat. Minutes later, after Josie Morgan punched CNU's first shot off the side of the cage, Rhodes retaliated. Facing an odd-man rush, Lien burned out of the cage to break up a run and stopped another shot off a corner, but the Lynx eventually managed to find some daylight in the 12th minute to light up the scoreboard.
 
After breaking through, Rhodes tried hard to add some cushion, but Christopher Newport pieced together one of the biggest defensive stands of the year to keep the squad in the game. Cooke continued her standout effort and cut down on two surges before breaking up a shot off a corner attempt. Later, Alexa Weaver came through with a game-saving effort.
 
In the 17th minute, an RC player broke free and slipped past Lien for a clean look at the cage. Catching up to the play, Weaver absolutely blanketed the attacker, refusing to give her an inch. Shadowing her along the near post, she eventually prevented a strike before the rest of the defense could catch up and clamp down.
 
After surviving the scare, Christopher Newport found its rhythm on the other side. With seven minutes left in the half, Allshouse and Calli Ioannou backed their way into the circle and fired shots. Later, Mackenzie Neylon broke up a clear attempt, booked it past two midfielders, and fed a roller to Bailey Miller. With a good look, the freshman sent a high feed towards the cage. After the goalie went low, Allshouse went high and banged a dart out of the air to even the score at one in the 29th minute.
 
Back on even ground, the Captains picked up the attack. Ioannou hustled in and broke down the defense, dipping and dodging through a horde of Lynx to get the ball into the circle before earning a corner. Later, Allshouse swung hard off a feed from Morgan and Abby Cryts smacked a shot along the near post, but the first attempt was stoned and the latter caught the cage to keep the game tied entering halftime.
 
Following the break, Ioannou kept the pressure up. First, she got the goalie on the ground, but the play was broken up. Later, she had an attempt stoned off a corner before battling three defenders to keep the ball on the offensive end. Although Rhodes managed to clear the zone for a brief moment, Cooke intercepted a centering feed and fed it to Allshouse in the 41st minute.
 
Setting a blistering pace, the second-year star cruised through the midfield, rolled around a defender at the top of the circle, and sent a perfect feed in to Thompson, who deflected the ball just enough to send it spiraling into the back of the cage for a 2-1 advantage.
 
Looking for more, Ioannou capitalized on her relentless efforts two minutes later. The freshman sprung free along the near sideline before threading a pinpoint feed through three defenders to Thompson. Running free, Thompson grabbed control, cut back to clear a defender, and punched a dart from deep inside the circle to snatch a two-goal advantage.
 
Trailing by a pair, Rhodes whistled for a timeout and attempted a response. In the 44th minute, Sarah Miller made a tackle at the top of the arc to stone the initial threat before Weaver broke up a play on the far side. Shortly thereafter, Lien laid out to knock down a deep rush and Muir punched the ball away to help clear the zone.
 
Continuing her work on the defensive end, Weaver pieced together a tremendous performance all over the field. First, she faced a blast off a corner, batted it down, and hammered the ball out of the zone. Later, with just under 11 minutes remaining in the stanza, she showed off her athleticism after catching up to an attacker, who had momentarily slipped free. After chasing her down, Weaver punched the ball out from behind with an out-stretched stop to regain possession.
 
Following another timeout, the Captains kept up the intensity and frustrated the Lynx with persistent pressure. Cooke picked off a pass and bolted right by a line of defenders to get into the offensive zone. Moments later, Sarah Miller played deep back and cut off a roller to end a threat before it began. Although Rhodes attempted to block a clearing feed, Miller blistered a ball right through a wall of three midfielders before Cryts found her way to the near corner.
 
With the clock becoming a friend, Christopher Newport settled down and began chipping away at the final few minutes. Madison Doss clamped down on a run and sent a pass to Allshouse, who juggled the ball down the field to cut nearly a minute off the board. Neylon also batted a ball down before Muir broke up a three-on-two opportunity with 90 seconds left in regulation.
 
Although the ball eventually found its way deep into the CNU zone, Lien closed things out. In the waning moments, the senior goalie showed off her leg, punting the ball across midfield to keep the clock moving and run off the final few ticks.
 
During the game, both teams notched 11 shots, while Rhodes held a 7-4 advantage in corners. In addition to Lien's seven saves for CNU, Lauren Eckelkamp contributed three for the Lynx.
 
Christopher Newport will return to action on Wednesday when the Captains travel to No. 3 Salisbury for a 6 p.m. clash.
 
---CNU---