NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Playing on Labor Day for the first time in program history, the 14th-ranked Christopher Newport field hockey team put in some solid work during a non-conference battle with Oberlin as CNU capitalized on a six-point day by Josie Morgan and another suffocating defensive effort to register a 7-0 victory over the Yeowomen on a magnificent Monday morning at Captains Turf Field.
 
Leading the onslaught, Morgan posted the finest game of her career as she erupted for two goals and a pair of assists. Five other Captains also found the back of the cage against Oberlin, including Abby Cryts, who notched her third goal in less than 24 hours.
 
With the victory, Christopher Newport improves to 2-0 on the season, while Oberlin falls to 0-2.
 
The 10 a.m. start time did nothing to slow down the potent CNU attack as the squad looked electric from the beginning. In the very first minute of action, Carol Thompson broke free on a sprint down the left sideline and sailed a feed through the Oberlin defense that just missed Cryts' stick. Although the Yeowomen attempted to move the ball out of their zone, Madison Doss, Alexa Weaver, and Brittan Muir all swallowed up clearing feeds to keep the pressure on.
 
Eventually, Doss gained control and ripped a shot that was stoned by the Oberlin goalie. With quick instincts, she corralled the roller and slammed home her own rebound to light up the scoreboard for a 1-0 lead in the fourth minute of action.
 
Less than two minutes later, Cryts kept the good times rolling. Morgan pushed into the zone and cleared the face of a defender before lining a centering feed across the circle to Cryts. With a quick touch, the sophomore added her third goal of the season with a dart to extend the lead to two.
 
With the offense doing its job, the defense also stepped up and swarmed the Yeowomen. In the 13th minute, the visitors were able to earn a penalty corner. Although Oberlin managed to insert the ball to the top of the arc, Rachel Cooke quickly deflected the ensuing shot to keep the squad off the board. Moments later, Sarah Miller stopped an attacker in her tracks on a deep run before clearing the CNU end.
 
After thwarting Oberlin's attack, Christopher Newport went back to work on the other end. Unleashing on the opposition, Hannah Clark blistered a rocket that caught the goalie's pads before Cryts swatted the rebound out of the air. Although the visitors were able to withstand that surge, the Captains kept up the attack and eventually found an opening.
 
In the 24th minute, Cryts returned to the scene and smoked a shot from the far side of the field that caught the pipe. Incredibly, the ball deflected right out to Morgan on the near side. Showing off her stick skills, she captured the roller and fired a one-timer into the back of the cage for her first goal of the contest.
 
Two minutes later, Kana Hashigami extended the lead to four with a little help from Morgan. In the middle of a scrum in front of the cage, Morgan managed to push a roller out to Hashigami, who found some room to work and quickly cleaned up with her first collegiate goal. Shortly thereafter, the Captains came back with their fifth strike off a corner as Muir ran point and slipped a pass to Mackenzie Neylon, who pumped a dagger to give the hosts a 5-0 edge in the 30th minute.
 
Still on the attack, Morgan added the final punctuation mark in the first half with one last tally. The third-year standout launched an initial shot that was batted down by the Oberlin goalie. Despite the momentary setback, Morgan kept battling. Muscling through the defense, she pounded away at the ball as the goalkeeper tried to control the deflection. Finally, after a relentless assault, she managed to punch the roller into the cage for her second strike of the half.
 
Following halftime, the Captains continued to control the momentum as their defense rarely gave the Yeowomen a sliver of daylight. Early in the stanza, Bailey Miller stole the ball at midfield with a great tackle before Ashley Hiltabrand chased down a long feed to clamp down on a possible breakaway. Minutes later, Muir cleaned up another run on the far side of the field before the visitors had an opportunity to strike.
 
Eventually, the CNU offense found its footing one last time and capped off the scoring with just under 10 minutes remaining in regulation. Breaking into the Oberlin end, Alexa Weaver controlled the ball and managed to draw the goalie out of the cage before using a nice touch pass to find Riley Keeter on the far side. With a clean look, she quickly capitalized with a bullet to the back of the cage for a 7-0 edge.
 
With little work left to do, the Captains eased into the victory. Calli Ioannou stoned a centering feed on a deep Oberlin surge with five minutes left before Doss intercepted another pass to end a separate threat. Shortly thereafter, Miller got her stick on the ball to break up one last surge before Morgan cleared the zone to help ice the squad's second straight shutout.
 
Overall, Christopher Newport held a 42-1 edge in shots and a 13-1 lead in corners during the contest. Through two games, the Captains have allowed only one shot while out-scoring the opposition, 11-0.
 
CNU will return to action on Friday when the squad heads to Danville, Kentucky for a 7 p.m. battle with Centre.
 
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