Live Stats // Video Stream
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- The 14th-ranked Christopher Newport men's lacrosse team will return home on Wednesday at 7 p.m. when CNU hosts No. 12 Roanoke in a nationally-ranked showdown at Captains Field.
Christopher Newport enters the contest with a 2-1 record, including a 1-0 mark at home. Meanwhile, Roanoke is 1-0 on the season. Wednesday's contest will be the first road test of the year for the Maroons.
For those fans unable to attend the game, live stats will be available at CNUsports.com. The Captains will also provide a broadcast of the contest with Andy McGregor and Will Geise calling all of the action. Direct links to both features can be found at the top of this release and on the CNU schedule page.
On a two-game roll entering Wednesday, Christopher Newport jumped up two spots in the most recent USILA National Coaches Poll. The Captains earned 150 points in the rankings, which placed them just one point behind No. 13 Denison. Meanwhile, Roanoke also moved up a spot in the latest poll while settling into 12th after collecting 204 points.
Entering the midweek battle,
Scott McAneney is tied for 12th in the nation with 41 saves. The junior has posted at least 10 in each of his first three appearances this year, becoming just the third goalie in program history to record double-digit save efforts in the first three games of a season. Ray Ralph accomplished the feat in 2007, while current assistant coach
Matt Hayden did it in 2016 and 2017.
Along with McAneney's work between the pipes, the CNU defense has forced an average of 13 turnovers per game this season, which leads the Capital Athletic Conference. Their high watermark came against Colorado College on February 15 when the squad caused 18 turnovers. That equaled the fourth-highest single-game total in program history.
Headlining the defensive unit,
Drew Cornell has five caused turnovers this season, while
Will Cogan has four. Midfielders
Phoenix Hines,
Miles Collins, and
Campbell Pozin all have four apiece as well. Cornell, Cogan, and Collins were especially active in their last outing against Hampden-Sydney when all three standouts forced three turnovers apiece.
Along with the defensive standouts,
Brady Altobello has 12 points through three games. That equals the most by a freshman in his first three outings in program history. Fittingly, the only other freshman to register 12 points in his first three contests was current teammate and reigning CAC Rookie of the Year,
Dylan Rice. Among all players, only former legend John Thompson had more points in the first three games of a season. He notched 14 to kick off his sophomore campaign in 2013.
On the other side of the field, Roanoke is coming off of a 17-7 triumph over Sewanee last Friday. Running away with the victory, RC pulled out to a 3-1 lead after 15 minutes before entering halftime with a 9-3 edge. The Maroons out-scored the Tigers by at least two goals in all four quarters. On an individual level, Jason Sarro led the way with seven points, while Wyatt Naylor had five goals.
Entering the year, Roanoke picked up a first-place vote and was slotted third overall in the ODAC Preseason Coaches Poll. Sarro and Ian Davies were both named Preseason All-Americans by Inside Lacrosse. Davies was also celebrated as the USILA National Goalie of the Year in 2018. Meanwhile, Tim Aldinger and Brendan Devane are also back after securing All-League recognition last year for the Maroons.
In four previous match-ups between Roanoke and CNU, both squads have walked away with two victories. They split last year's two meetings with RC notching a 9-8 triumph during the regular season before the Captains upended the Maroons, 17-11, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Wednesday's battle will mark the first time the two squads have met in Newport News.
---CNU---
