NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- The Christopher Newport women's lacrosse team will face a pair of midweek tests as CNU travels to Washington (Md.) for a 6 p.m. tilt on Tuesday before hosting Messiah in a 3:30 p.m. match-up on Thursday at Captains Field.
                                                   
Entering the week, Christopher Newport is 4-4 overall. On the other side, Washington (Md.) is 3-2, including 2-0 at home, while Messiah is 1-6 with a 1-3 mark on the road.
 
Washington (Md.) will provide live stats and a video stream of Tuesday's game, while CNU will do the same for Thursday's action. Links to all of those features can be found at the top of this release and on the CNU schedule page.
 
Christopher Newport saw its four-game winning streak come to an end on Saturday when No. 22 Scranton used a huge second-half push to steal a 14-6 victory. Despite the setback, the Captains still rank among the national leaders in fewest turnovers committed per contest. CNU is averaging just 14.6 miscues per game, which stands 21st in the NCAA and marks the best rate in the Capital Athletic Conference.
 
Among the stingiest Captains, Katie Orrison has 13 points and only three turnovers this year. Additionally, defensive standouts Victoria Betterly, Kendall Krause, Taylor Walker, and Hannah Curry all have caused at least twice as many turnovers as they have committed.
 
Along with the squad's top defenders, Kaitlyn Ready ranks fifth in the NCAA and first in the Capital Athletic Conference with 94 saves this season. She is just six stops shy of joining Gayle Robinson and Hanna Slough as the only players in program history with at least 100 saves in three straight seasons. Robinson accomplished the feat from 2008-10, while Slough did it from 2013-15.
 
On the other side of the field, Washington (Md.) enters Tuesday's contest on a two-game roll, including a 16-12 win over Randolph-Macon on Saturday. Overall this season, Cecily Docktor leads the Shorewomen with 24 points, including 14 assists. Meanwhile, Aubrey Robinson has a team-high 17 goals. Robinson and Alison Pantazes have also converted 80 percent of their free-position attempts this season, which equals the 29th-best rate in the NCAA.
 
Messiah comes to town after splitting its two games last week, including a 14-10 setback against York (Pa.) on Saturday. The Captains will be the third CAC squad that the Falcons have faced this season with MC having dropped battles against York and Mary Washington. McKenna Edwards leads Messiah with 14 points this year, while Abby Howard has 12 goals. On the defensive side, Amber Orner has a .377 save percentage and a 14.73 goals-against-average during her six appearances between the pipes.
 
Thursday's battle will mark the first time Messiah and CNU have met in women's lacrosse. Meanwhile, the Captains and Shorewomen have fought four times with Washington (Md.) holding a 4-0 edge in the series.
 
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