YORK, Pa. -- The 17th-ranked Christopher Newport field hockey team dropped its Capital Athletic Conference opener on Saturday afternoon as the Captains fell behind early and could not catch up to York (Pa.) in a 2-0 setback at Kinsley Field.
 
The Spartans opened the scoring with a pair of first-half strikes and were able to hang on for the hard-fought victory. Despite the setback, Bailey Lien put together a terrific effort between the pipes with a season-high eight saves, while the entire defense did a solid job keeping the game close against the high-powered York attack, which out-shot the Captains, 18-4.
 
With the loss, Christopher Newport falls to 6-2 on the season, including 0-1 in the CAC. York (Pa.) improves to 6-2 overall and 1-0 in league action.
 
In a sign of things to come, the Spartans controlled possession early in the first half, but the CNU defense stepped up and handled the initial wave. The hosts attempted to insert the ball three times into the circle, but Rachael Allshouse batted down each pass. Later, York earned a penalty corner, but Christopher Newport's back line put pressure on and forced an errant shot to keep the game scoreless.
 
Unfortunately, the pressure continued to mount. Poking at the Captains, the Spartans finally found some daylight on a cross in front of the cage to steal a 1-0 lead in the ninth minute of action.
 
Staring at a one-goal deficit, the CNU defense dug in again. Mackenzie Neylon deflected a shot off another corner attempt before Lien put on a clinic between the pipes. Off a third corner try, she made a diving save, spun on the turf, and got back on her feet to prevent a rebound. Moments later, she swatted down another rocket before diving towards the far post to prevent a strike in the 18th minute.
 
Continuing to face pressure, Alexa Weaver disrupted York's next corner attempt and forced a swing-and-miss on a YCP shot at the top of the circle. Lien also remained vigilant in the cage as she went to the turf again to smother an initial shot and rebound to keep the deficit at one.
 
Once again, the Spartans remained undaunted by the defensive dominance. Eventually, with nine minutes remaining in the opening half, the hosts earned another corner and quickly capitalized to push their lead to two.
 
Needing to mount a response, the Captains pieced together a rally in the waning moments of the opening stanza. Calli Ioannou knocked down a high floater to keep the ball on York's half of the field before Carol Thompson burst into the circle and earned a corner. Later, Weaver came through with a great tackle near midfield to prevent another clear that led to a second corner try, but Christopher Newport came away empty-handed and headed to the break with a two-goal deficit.
 
Following halftime, the Captains tried to whittle together an offensive rally in the second period. Madison Doss did solid work to pick off a pair of passes and keep some early pressure on York. Rachel Cooke also frustrated several Spartans along the near sideline, but the hosts still managed to clear the zone. Fortunately, on the back end, Lien was up to the task again and dove out of the goal to break up a deep run before her offense revved up.
 
After withstanding York's surge, Christopher Newport had its best opportunity to strike in the 39th minute. Ioannou and Josie Morgan slipped free and burst towards the cage. Pounding at the Spartans, both standouts ripped pointblank bullets, but both shots were stoned by the hosts. Moments later, the Captains earned a corner, but Brittan Muir's ensuing shot was gobbled up by the defense before any damage could be done.
 
Still pressuring York, Weaver made a textbook tackle with 21 minutes left and slipped the ball to Doss. Looking for an opening, the junior showed off tremendous stick skills and fended off several defenders while working her way  around the arc, but she simply could not find an opening. Later, Muir and Cooke came back with two more tackles to keep the ball away from the Spartans, but the attack struggled to find its footing.
 
On the other end of the field, the Captains continued to keep York at bay after their early missteps. With nine minutes left, Lien sprawled out on the turf again to clamp down on a Spartan surge, while Muir prevented a shot on the near side after an attacker wiggled free and had a clean look. Sarah Miller also broke back and prevented a pair of breakaways in the final few moments to keep a manageable deficit, but the Spartans were equally stingy and clamped down on CNU's last-ditch efforts, including shots by Thompson and Neylon, to close out the contest.
 
Along with out-shooting the Captains, 18-4, York also held a 12-5 lead in corners. Eve Hauptle earned the victory after making two saves against Lien's eight.
 
Christopher Newport will return to action on Tuesday when the squad travels to Virginia Wesleyan for a 5 p.m. contest.
 
---CNU---