SALEM, Va. -- Entering the fourth quarter tied at seven, the Christopher Newport men's lacrosse team erupted for four straight goals and the defense pieced together a suffocating effort as the Captains stunned 11th-ranked Roanoke, 11-7, during an epic non-conference battle on Wednesday evening at Kerr Stadium.
 
Against the Maroons, Dave Magdeburger and Will Geise both registered four points, while Ryan Mills added a hat-trick. Joey Rolando also had three points, and both Matthew Crist and Drew Magnusson contributed a pair.
 
On the defensive end, Matt Hayden was a wall between the pipes as the junior stepped up with 14 saves and grabbed three ground balls. Meanwhile, Brandon Moloney and Michael Mabry both forced a pair of turnovers, while Trevor Royce contributed a team-high four ground balls to help silence the high-powered Roanoke attack.
 
With the victory, the Captains improve to 5-1 on the season. Making history with the win, the triumph marks the program's third victory over a nationally-ranked opponent and its second on the road since the team was founded in 2007.
 
The setback drops Roanoke to 6-2 overall and snaps the squad's three-game winning streak.
 
After the two teams battled to a 7-7 draw entering the fourth quarter, Christopher Newport drew first blood and quickly broke the deadlock. Just over a minute into the final stanza, Magdeburger wrapped around the left post, motored along the crease, and sniped a bullet just inside the right pipe to snare an 8-7 advantage.
 
Needing a little more breathing room, Moloney forced a crucial turnover to give the ball back to the offense. Starting to find a rhythm, Mills kept the momentum on CNU's side as he beat a defender, slipped free, and snapped off a bullet to push the lead to 9-7 with 13 minutes remaining in regulation.
 
Staring at a two-goal deficit, Roanoke earned a pair of man-up situations. Needing to buckle down, the CNU defense was up to the challenge. Hayden made a huge save to help kill the first penalty before Royce stepped out and challenged a Maroon at the top of the zone during the second. Getting into the face of the attacker, he eventually forced an errant pass, which gave the ball back to CNU and killed off the penalty.
 
Following the defensive stand, the offense struck again. Magdeburger took control of the ball on the far side of the field as the defense crashed down on the senior. With the Maroons over-pursuing, he quickly flipped to Randy Foster, who whistled a low rocket into the back of the net to secure a 10-7 edge with less than eight minutes remaining in the game.
 
With the Captains inching away, the Maroons had one last opportunity as CNU was hit with another penalty. During the man-up situation, Roanoke attempted a hidden-ball trick at the top of the zone, but the defense was unfazed and swarmed the shooter before blocking the shot and regaining possession.
 
Still playing a man-down, the visitors quickly cleared the ball before Magnusson connected with Geise, who unleashed a screamer that cut right through the defense and gave Christopher Newport an 11-7 lead with four minutes left.
 
Although the Maroons attempted a last-minute rally, the Captains brushed it aside. Eventually, Hayden capped off his evening with one final save to seal the four-goal victory.
 
Overall, Roanoke held a 48-38 advantage in shots and a 38-25 lead in ground balls. The Maroons also won 16 of the game's 22 faceoffs, but CNU pulled out the victory behind a timely attack and a devastating defensive performance.
 
Although the game ended well for the Captains, Roanoke got off to a solid start as the hosts jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first two minutes of action. Unimpressed by the early assault, Christopher Newport had a response. First, Rolando found Geise, who wiggled free before unleashing a dagger to the back of the net for the squad's first goal. Later, with the Maroons mounting a response, the defense dug in.
 
Harrison Drier challenged an attacker with a slew of bruising stick checks. Eventually, after the hosts were able to work the ball inside, Mabry stood tall and pushed back his mark before Hayden snared a shot. Shortly thereafter, Jake O'Connell forced an RC miscue before Royce grabbed the loose ball.
 
Looking to pull even, Rolando came back with his second assist as the senior dished to Mills, who found an opening on the doorstep to knot the game at two.
 
With the momentum, the Captains grabbed their first lead of the game just over three minutes later. After a loose ball scrum, CNU caught Roanoke in an unsettled situation. With the Maroons on their heels, Geise took control of the roller and flipped to Crist, who drove home a laser to snatch a 3-2 edge.
 
Although Roanoke fired back with three straight goals to end the first quarter and another tally to open up the second, Christopher Newport never relented. Staring at a 6-3 deficit, the Captains went back to work. Showing off some range, Magnusson unleashed a sidewinder from just inside the attacking zone before Magdeburger added another long-range missile from 20-yards out to pull back within one at 6-5.
 
Later, the defense continued to handle the RC attack as Mabry forced two straight turnovers, while Hayden added a stop just before the end of the second stanza to keep the deficit at one entering halftime.
 
Following the break, Tony Cruz won the opening faceoff before the offense made the Maroons pay. Just over two minutes into the third, Mills dodged a defender and found himself one-on-one with the goalie. Unwilling to waste that opportunity, the junior pounded home the equalizer to retie the game at six.
 
Although Roanoke was able to break the deadlock a few minutes later, CNU settled in for a strong push at the end of the third. First, on the defensive side, Hayden made two saves, while Thomas Courtney caught up to an attacker who broke free and made just enough contact to force an off-balance shot, which ended the threat. Moments later, the offense capitalized as Rolando and Magdeburger joined forces on a dart from the doorstep to knot the score at seven entering the fourth.
 
After the back-and-forth battle throughout the first three periods, the Captains took control in the final quarter as the team tacked on four straight goals to pull away for the thrilling victory.
 
Along with Royce's four ground balls, Geise and Mabry both scooped up three. Drier also collected two and forced a turnover to help anchor the defensive efforts.
 
Christopher Newport will return to action on Saturday when the squad heads to Arlington for a 1 p.m. battle with Marymount.
 
---CNU---