NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- The Christopher Newport men's soccer team picked up its third consecutive shutout and eighth straight victory as CNU ran past Frostburg State, 2-0, during a Capital Athletic Conference battle on a wet Saturday evening at Captains Field.
 
After a scoreless first half, Andrew Gogolin opened the scoring in the second period before Derek Cook added the final punctuation mark to close out the 2-0 victory. Meanwhile, the defense smothered the Bobcats as Zach Pedini made three saves and the rest of the Captains kept the FSU attack in-check to lock up the shutout.
 
With the victory, Christopher Newport improves to 9-2 on the season, including 4-0 in league action. The setback drops Frostburg State to 3-8-2 with a 1-3 mark in CAC play.
 
In the first half, the Captains had some opportunities but were turned away by a strong FSU defense. Early in the contest, Gogolin turned around a defender, found some space, and smoked a blast that was just pushed aside by Frostburg State's goalie. Minutes later, Zachary Ballard hammered one from the right side, but his attempt was punched away as well.
 
Keeping the pressure on, Christopher Newport had another terrific look late in the half. Jordan Boone connected with Ballard, who fed a cross to the left post. Slipping free, James Lee made a diving stab at the ball, but it just squirted beyond his reach to keep the game scoreless entering halftime.
 
Following the break, the Captains looked reenergized. Although Andrew Maeso and Stephen Durbin had a pair of early attempts blocked, CNU remained vigilant. After the Bobcats attempted to clear the zone in the 52nd minute, Christopher Newport retaliated with a rapid-fire counterstrike.
 
Bobby Seifert picked off the ball and booted it back towards the offensive end. Showing off pinpoint precision, his feed dropped perfectly to Durbin, who used a quick one-touch pass to find Gogolin sailing up the right side. Cruising through the defense, the senior blistered one past Frostburg State's diving goalie to give the hosts a 1-0 edge.
 
Trailing by a goal, the Bobcats attempted to retaliate, but CNU clamped down. FSU earned a lengthy free kick in the 55th minute, but Samsu Sallah got his head on the ball to break up the feed. Shortly thereafter, Sallah stripped a midfielder and jumpstarted another counter attack. Jimmy Grace found Durbin streaking up the field, but the junior was taken down before he could capitalize.
 
Later, Gogolin fired a laser that was pushed over the crossbar before the Captains earned a corner kick in the 59th minute. Looking to take advantage of the situation, Daniel Zeitoun served it in perfectly. On the other side, in the middle of a scrum, Cook elevated and got his head on the ball just enough to deflect it into the net for a 2-0 advantage.
 
With a two-goal edge, Christopher Newport built a wall at midfield. Rarely letting the Bobcats slip past, Seifert and Davis Pillow broke up three separate runs to keep the FSU attack in-check. Later, after the visitors managed to cross the line, Pedini was ready on the back end and made a nice save after a corner kick to keep the shutout intact.
 
Looking to extend the lead on the other side, Michael Wilson showed off some fancy footwork in the left corner. The sophomore dismantled a defender in a one-on-one situation before serving a pass into the center of the zone. Unfortunately, Noah Peizer's ensuing shot just missed high.
 
With time winding down, Frostburg State picked up its pressure but had little success finding a hole in the CNU defense. With five minutes left, Maeso bulled through several attackers to clear the ball out of the zone. Later, the Bobcats came storming back and earned a pair of corner kicks in the waning moments but came away empty-handed again.
 
On the first corner in the 86th minute, Pedini showed off his quick reaction time as he made a gorgeous save off a deflection while pushing the ball over the pipes. Moments later, Grace cleaned up the second attempt and cleared the zone to help close out the 2-0 triumph.
 
Overall, Christopher Newport held a 15-3 advantage in shots and a 6-5 lead in corner kicks.
 
The Captains will return to action on Wednesday when they travel north for a 3:30 p.m. match-up with St. Mary's (Md.).


 
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