NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Colleen Bourgal erupted for eight points, including her 100th career tally, while Olivia Aumais registered her first collegiate hat-trick as the Christopher Newport women's lacrosse team raced past Southern Virginia, 20-2, in a Capital Athletic Conference match-up on a warm Wednesday afternoon at Captains Turf Field.
 
During the contest, Bourgal led the Captains with five goals and three assists. With that performance, she became the 20th player in program history to record 100 career points. Meanwhile, Aumais lit up the Knights with her first career hat-trick after striking three times in the second half.
 
Flashing a well-balanced attack, five other Captains posted three points during the contest. Gracie Sanders headlined that group with two goals and an assist to go along with four ground balls, two caused turnovers, and a pair of draw controls. Tess D'Arcy also forced four turnovers and secured three rollers, while Claire Chadwick caused a pair of miscues as well.
 
Overall, CNU finished with 18 caused turnovers during the contest. That equaled the sixth-highest single-game total in program history. The squad's six free-position strikes also matched the third-finest effort all-time by the Captains.
 
With the victory, Christopher Newport improves to 8-8 on the season, including 4-3 in league action. The setback drops Southern Virginia to 5-10 with an 0-7 mark in CAC play.
 
Following a defensive struggle in the early going, which included a pair of quick saves by Kaitlyn Ready, the Captains began to find their rhythm in the eighth minute of action. After a failed clear by the Knights, Bourgal grabbed a loose ball and pushed the pace. Catching the SVU defense on its heels, she burst in and fed to her left. Grabbing the pass along the far post, Carly Wilson snapped off a low screamer to light up the scoreboard.
 
Less than 20 seconds later, after Sarah Culver controlled the ensuing draw, CNU struck again. Caitlin King took possession and shoveled the ball over to Bourgal, who finished on the interior for a quick 2-0 edge.
 
Following the fast-paced assault on the offensive end, the Captains buckled down on the defensive side as well. Sanders badgered a midfielder to force a turnover before scooping up a ricochet after a tremendous stop by Ready. Later, Ready stoned three more attempts, including an eight-meter try, while Caroline Kurtz picked off an errant heave to give possession back to the attack.
 
Looking to stretch the lead, Christopher Newport turned back to Bourgal. The senior sniped a dart off a free-position attempt before feeding inside to Anna Bowers, who dropped one in on the doorstep. Moments later, Bowers showcased her versatility. Isolated one-on-one on the near side of the field, the sophomore bullied her defender before connecting with Caitlin King, who snuck in the backdoor to stretch the lead to 5-0.
 
With the momentum firmly planted on the CNU sideline, the Captains continued to stretch their lead. Sanders struck twice, including an eight-meter missile, while Bourgal flashed her wheels on the way to two more goals. First, she converted on a breakaway after slipping free with Bowers on an odd-man rush. Minutes later, after Madison Callan bolted up the field, the freshman hit Bourgal in-stride on the way to the squad's ninth goal.
 
Continuing to pressure in the final minutes of the opening half, D'Arcy forced a turnover before regaining possession on the offensive end after a successful clear by Aumais. With the Knights in an unsettled situation, D'Arcy connected with Wilson, who faked high and shot low on the way to a 10-0 edge entering the break.
 
In the second half, the Knights opened the scoring before the hosts responded with a vengeance. Seconds after SVU's first goal, Chadwick grabbed the draw and fed up the field to Sanders. Cutting her way towards the crease, the freshman eventually passed inside to Aumais, who drove one home alongside the right pipe to regain a double-digit lead at 11-1.
 
Stretching the edge, Golden connected on back-to-back attempts, including a sidewinder off a feed from Callan. Shortly thereafter, Chadwick ripped the ball away from a Knight after SVU controlled the next draw. Capitalizing on the defensive work, Callan rolled around a defender before drilling another point-blank bullet to push the lead to 15-1.
 
Although Southern Virginia managed to toss its second goal on the board, Christopher Newport never lost control. Aumais and Kurtz sank two straight free-position attempts. Later, with five minutes remaining, Aumais capped off her hat-trick following a pinpoint pass by Katie Orrison to steal an 18-2 edge.
 
In addition to the offensive heroics, the defense continued to do its job as well. Ellie Hansen locked down a pair of attackers on the far side of the field and helped force the visitors to run out the shot clock. Later, Jessica Ross won a sprint to the end line against an SVU attacker to regain possession after a shot whistled wide.
 
With little left to prove, Catherine Leighty broke down a defender and charged towards the cage before landing a bounce shot inside the post to grab a 17-goal lead. Just over a minute later, with only seconds remaining on the clock, Savannah Callan whistled a low liner off an eight-meter attempt to lock up the 20-2 victory.
 
Overall, Christopher Newport held a 40-19 advantage in shots and a 34-15 lead in ground balls. Meanwhile, Southern Virginia controlled 13 of the game's 23 draws, although Culver finished with three for the Captains. Additionally, seven players had at least three ground balls, including Mackenzie Regen, who also forced a turnover and helped anchor the stout defensive unit.
 
Ready also contributed 12 saves to earn her eighth victory of the year. The sophomore scooped up two ground balls as well.
 
Christopher Newport will return to action on Saturday when the team hosts Wesley in the regular season finale at 2 p.m.
 
---CNU---