BALTIMORE, Md. -- For the second time in three days, the 10th-ranked Christopher Newport field hockey team battled back from an early deficit to force overtime but fell in the extra session as the Captains dropped a 2-1 decision to No. 17 Johns Hopkins during a top-20 showdown on Monday evening at Homewood Field.
 
After Courtnie Greene evened the score with a deflection in the middle of the second half, both teams dug in and played tremendous defense to keep the game knotted at one through the end of regulation. Unfortunately, Johns Hopkins regained its footing in the first overtime period as the hosts scored in the 79th minute to steal the victory.
 
With the setback, Christopher Newport falls to 8-4 on the season. The victory bumps Johns Hopkins' winning streak to nine straight games and moves the squad to 13-1 overall.
 
After 70 grueling minutes of regulation, the two teams embarked on a back-and-forth overtime thrill ride. Standing up to Hopkins' initial wave, Brittan Muir knocked down an insert on the far side of the circle before Greene and Courtney Fiest double-teamed an attacker to thwart a run on the opposite side.
 
Moments later, the Blue Jays earned a corner, but Rachel Cooke helped pressure the shooter and grabbed an errant pass to jumpstart a rally the other way. Fiest eventually secured possession, beat a defender, and laced a screamer towards the cage, but the JHU goalie made a great save.
 
Retaliating, the hosts immediately stormed down the field as a Blue Jay slipped free on a breakaway. Closing off the cage, Olivia Davis stepped out, hit the turf, and stunted the surge. Although Johns Hopkins earned a corner, Greene swallowed the shot in the middle of the circle.
 
As reinforcements arrived on the field, Jackie Kotoriy pressured a Blue Jay on the far sideline and forced her out-of-bounds to gain possession. Later, Ariana Samuel swiped a ball at midfield and spun a roller up the field, but Rachael Allshouse's run was intercepted. Shortly thereafter, Fiest kept possession and pieced together a dizzying display to spin through several defenders before firing a dart into the circle. Greene also hammered a lengthy attempt towards the cage, but the JHU defense was undeterred.
 
Unfortunately, after withstanding Christopher Newport's best efforts, Johns Hopkins bolted the other way. Generating a 2-on-1 in the 79th minute, the hosts eventually capitalized as Maddie Brown-Scherer punched one past the last line to lock up the win.
 
Even throughout the contest, CNU held a slim 17-15 advantage in shots, while Johns Hopkins had a 9-8 edge in corners.
 
Long before the Blue Jays walked away with the win, the two squads looked evenly matched. Davis brushed aside Johns Hopkins' first attempt early in the contest before the Captains took control. Cooke and Samuel both poked away passes near midfield to maintain possession before Bailey Miller stoned a clearing attempt and twirled around a defender to keep the ball on the CNU side of the field. Later, Fiest whistled a shot through the circle that just trickled wide.
 
Continuing to stymie the Blue Jays, Nyla Lewis won a duel during a one-on-one situation on the near side of the field before Izzy Diz bolted back to beat an attacker for a ball that slipped across midfield.
 
Although Johns Hopkins eventually picked up the pressure, Christopher Newport's defensive unit held strong. The hosts earned a pair of corner attempts, but Davis and Muir sealed off the left post on the first try before Davis came back with a kick save on the second shot.
 
Meanwhile, on the other side, Allshouse sliced a well-placed pass through the Hopkins defense to Angelica Florendo, who caught the Blue Jays off-guard and earned a corner. After the hosts handled the attempt, the Captains fired right back. Staring at a wall of defenders, Kennedy Johnson avoided the temptation to take the ball herself and simply lofted a gorgeous aerial over the Blue Jays to Allshouse, who blasted an on-target shot that was kicked out by the Johns Hopkins goalie.
 
Continuing to control the game, Johnson stole two more passes near midfield before Fiest chipped the ball around three defenders and cracked it up the field, but Florendo just missed redirecting the ball towards the cage.
 
Unfortunately, after handling CNU's pressure, Johns Hopkins retaliated on the other end as the hosts converted a penalty corner in the 26th minute to steal a 1-0 lead.
 
After the hosts opened the scoring with a corner late in the first half, they attempted to stretch the lead the same way early in the second stanza. In the first 10 minutes of the new period, Johns Hopkins earned three penalty corners. Although the first two attempts fell apart, the third one was a dangerous opportunity. Facing an onslaught, Davis made a save before Greene deflected the rebound. Still battling, Johnson stoned a bullet on the near side before Greene finally brought an end to the madness and drilled the ball out of the circle.
 
Needing to respond, Christopher Newport nearly struck in the 51st minute. Cooke knocked a ball to midfield before Kotoriy tipped it to Allshouse. Setting the turf on fire, the senior standout cruised up the field and generated a breakaway opportunity. Unfortunately, the JHU goalkeeper slipped out of the cage and took her to the ground to prevent any damage.
 
Unfazed, the Captains came back in the 54th minute. After earning a corner, Kotoriy inserted the ball to Fiest, who unleashed a screamer towards the cage. Setting up shop in front of the keeper, Greene eventually tossed her stick out and deflected the scorcher just enough to send it hurdling over the defense for her second goal of the season.
 
After a timeout, Johnson stood up against the Blue Jays' retaliation attempts. First, she stayed on the hip of an attacker on the right side of the circle to prevent a shot. Later, she did her best impersonation of a wall along the near sideline as she broke up four straight Hopkins' runs to keep the hosts at bay.
 
Entering the final 10 minutes of regulation, both teams picked up the pressure. First, Johns Hopkins had a clean look at the cage, but Davis scurried out, dropped down, and broke up the play before Muir gobbled up the rebound. Later, Christopher Newport closed out regulation with a rapid-fire assault.
 
Fiest torched a pair of defenders with seven minutes left to earn a corner, but the ensuing attempt was blocked. Later, Johnson kept the ball on CNU's side with a pair of looping rainbows over the JHU defense. Taking advantage, Allshouse drilled an on-target attempt while Fiest bullied her way inside to earn another corner with three minutes left.
 
With the Blue Jays holding strong against the mounting surge, Christopher Newport had its best opportunity to grab the victory as time expired. Fiest slipped a feed to Allshouse, who earned a corner as the clock hit zero. Although Fiest's initial rocket was stopped on the first attempt, she stuck with the play and earned a second corner. Later, Cooke secured a third attempt moments later, but Fiest's last-ditch shot went wide.
 
Following the action-packed end to regulation, the overtime session was equally exciting, but Johns Hopkins managed to survive the thriller and steal the win.
 
Christopher Newport will look to bounce back on Wednesday when the squad returns home for a Capital Athletic Conference clash against St. Mary's (Md.) at 6 p.m.
 
---CNU---