NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- With only three seconds remaining in the third overtime period, Dylan Rice capitalized on a feed from Jordan Lee to put a perfect punctuation mark on a marathon battle as the 15th-ranked Christopher Newport men's lacrosse team beat Washington (Md.), 11-10, during an edge-of-your-seat thrill ride on a gorgeous Wednesday evening at Captains Field.
                               
Putting an end to the longest game in program history, Rice came through with the clincher just before time expired. That goal was his third of the game, marking his 15th straight contest with at least one strike. That equals the third-longest streak in program history.
 
Along with Rice, Lucas Barry had a team-high five points, while Will Stockhausen and Brady Altobello had two goals apiece. Meanwhile, on the defensive end, Scott McAneney made 14 saves between the pipes, and Max Wayne caused a game-high six turnovers. Overall, six different Captains had at least two caused turnovers in the game, while eight players picked up multiple ground balls during a well-balanced effort.
 
With the victory, Christopher Newport improves to 5-2 on the season. The setback drops Washington (Md.) to 2-3.
 
After the visitors stormed back to force overtime with three goals in the fourth quarter, both squads settled in for a defensive slugfest in the extra sessions. In the first overtime period, the Shoremen controlled possession, but the CNU defense was up to the challenge. Campbell Pozin blanketed an attacker with a great ride around the zone before McAneney stoned a low liner. Later, Wayne and Drew Cornell caused turnovers to keep WC scoreless.
 
In the second overtime, the man-down unit was put on display. After the Captains were hit with a late penalty at the end of the first stanza, the Shoremen opened the period with an advantage. Refusing to back down, McAneney stoned another on-target rip before Aidan FitzGerald pounced on the loose ball and cleared the zone to help kill the penalty.
 
Later, after Washington (Md.) brushed aside a pair of shots by CNU, the two squads headed into a third overtime.
 
Once again, the visitors managed to open the period with a shot on goal, but McAneney was there to clean up in the crease. After the Captains came up empty-handed on the offensive side, Will Cogan put a lid on WC's ensuing surge after stripping an attacker deep in the zone. Shortly thereafter, with less than a minute left, Phoenix Hines blasted a midfielder near the sideline to force another turnover and give the ball back to the attack.
 
After Lee took control of a lengthy skip pass on the near side of the field with just four seconds left, he flipped to Rice, who found himself on the left side of the crease. With a clean look, the sophomore painted the top corner of the cage with lethal precision to put an end to the marathon contest.
 
Overall, Christopher Newport held a 64-36 advantage in shots, while Washington (Md.) won 14 of the game's 22 faceoffs. In his first appearance of the season, Tyler Iriondo came through with all eight of CNU's faceoff victories while also securing a pair of ground balls.
 
Hours before Rice's final strike, the two teams traded blows in the opening quarter. Barry opened the scoring after cleaning up the trash on the interior with a point-blank dart after an initial shot was brushed aside by the Shoremen. Although Washington (Md.) fired back with three straight strikes, Stockhausen and Altobello joined the action with their first goals at the tail end of the period to even the score at three.
 
Looking to gain some breathing room, the Captains owned the second quarter. Stockhausen and Barry added the only goals during the period, while the defense tormented the WC attack. McAneney was simply terrific between the pipes with six saves during the stanza, including three during a 30-second blitz by the opposition. Pozin and Miles Collins also helped cut off a pair of clear attempts to keep the Shoremen quiet entering halftime.
 
Finding their rhythm after the break, Barry, Rice, and Glenn Doering scored the first three goals of the second half to grab an 8-3 lead. Meanwhile, Collins stripped another midfielder and joined forces with Wayne to bruise up an attacker on the interior to headline a suffocating defensive stand.
 
Unfortunately, Washington (Md.) eventually retaliated. The visitors strung together three straight goals to inch back within two. Although Rice and Altobello teamed up on a pair of strikes by the Captains, the Shoremen added another tally just before the end of the third quarter to cut CNU's lead down to 10-7.
 
With the momentum planted firmly on their sideline, the visitors continued their run in the fourth. Finding some daylight, WC knotted the game at 10 with three goals over the final 15 minutes, including the equalizer with less than 40 seconds remaining in regulation.
 
Fortunately, Christopher Newport was able to regain its footing in overtime as the defense starred in the first two periods before Rice capped off the third with his late-game heroics to steal the victory.
 
Along with Wayne's showcase, Hines came through with four caused turnovers and five ground balls. Meanwhile, Pozin, Cornell, and Cogan all finished with three caused turnovers apiece as the Captains forced nine failed clears by the Shoremen.
 
Christopher Newport will return to action on Saturday when the squad heads to Washington, D.C. for a 1 p.m. showdown at Catholic.
 
---CNU---