FROSTBURG, Md. -- In its first game since breaking into the IWLCA National Poll, the 19th-ranked Christopher Newport women's lacrosse team picked up its seventh straight victory as the Captains toppled Frostburg State, 16-5, during a Capital Athletic Conference showdown on Saturday afternoon at Bobcat Stadium.
Meaghan Galvin led the Captains with eight points, including five goals. She also registered a game-high six draw controls. Meanwhile,
Catie Chess and
Caitlin King both added three points apiece, while
Sarah Culver chipped in with a pair of goals.
Tess D'Arcy stuffed the stat sheet as well with a goal, assist, ground ball, and caused turnover.
On the defensive end,
Corbyn Hale and
Maria Gianelle both forced a pair of turnovers, while
Emma Walsh came through with seven saves. The freshman goalie also added a game-high four ground balls on the way to her eighth victory of the year.
With the win, Christopher Newport improves to 8-1 on the season, including 3-0 in league action. The setback drops Frostburg State to 4-5 overall and 0-3 in CAC play.
Wasting little time, the Captains jumped on the Bobcats with four straight goals in the first seven minutes of action. Galvin led the early onslaught as the junior pumped a pair of strikes and added an assist on a bullet by
Colleen Bourgal. Chess also got into the act quickly after capitalizing on a feed from
Kylie Chaplin to help snatch the fast advantage.
Although Frostburg State responded with its first goal, Christopher Newport put together a relentless defensive effort in the middle of the opening half. Walsh made a pair of stops, including one of her patented saves on a free-position attempt. Hale also forced a miscue to flip possession, and
Sam Puglisi jumped on a loose ball to keep control before the CNU attack went back to work.
With just over 12 minutes remaining in the first half, the Captains exploded with a breathtaking assault. In the blink of an eye, the visitors flipped a three-goal lead into a double-digit advantage. Chess and Gianelle drove home back-to-back goals before Galvin caught fire again with two straight darts to push the lead to 8-1. Following another free-position stop by Walsh on the defensive end, CNU rolled into halftime.
King smoked an eight-meter goal before Chess capped off her first-half hat-trick with another laser to grab a 10-1 edge. Later, Gianelle clamped down on the defensive end and forced a pair of turnovers, while D'Arcy landed a free-position strike in the final minutes of the frame to nail down a 10-goal lead entering halftime.
Following the break, Frostburg State managed to score two of the first three goals in the second half, but Walsh buckled down. The first-year star made three saves, while Hale caused another turnover to disrupt a deep run by the Bobcats. Moments later, after Hale cleared the ball,
Sasha Towne took possession and fed a pinpoint pass to Chaplin, who dropped a dagger on the hosts to lock up a 13-3 lead with 17 minutes remaining.
Although the two teams traded the next four goals, including a pair of rockets by Culver, the Captains' lead was never in doubt. Still holding a 10-goal advantage with mere minutes left on the clock, D'Arcy forced a turnover and flipped the field. Eventually, King came through with the final nail off a pass from Galvin to ice the 16-5 triumph.
Overall, CNU held a 32-19 lead in shots and a 13-11 advantage in ground balls. The Captains also controlled 16 of the game's 22 draws and remained electric from the eight-meter arc. The squad converted five of its eight free-position attempts, including a perfect 3-for-3 effort by Galvin. The junior has now converted 12 of her 13 attempts this year and ranks among the NCAA leaders in free-position percentage.
Christopher Newport will return to action on March 30 when the team hosts Southern Virginia in a CAC match-up at 3 p.m.
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