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NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- The nationally-ranked Christopher Newport women's soccer team will open NCAA Tournament play on Saturday, November 13 against Cabrini University (10-5-4) at 1:00 p.m. The Captains (16-0-1) have won three straight and are unbeaten through the first 17 games of the year heading into the first round matchup. 

Christopher Newport is making the program's 13th NCAA Tournament appearance overall and the Captains' fifth consecutive showing in the postseason event. It marks the seventh time the opening rounds will be played on Captains Field with CNU owning a 6-4 all-time record in NCAA Tournament home games. That record only improves over the last five years, as CNU has won five of the last six matchups played in Newport News.

One of those five wins includes the only matchup ever between CNU and Cabrini as the Captains secured a 6-0 win against the Cavaliers in the opening round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament. The other two teams traveling to Captains Field for the opening round are Franklin & Marshall College (13-3-3) and 23rd-ranked Western Connecticut State University (18-1-0). CNU defeated WestConn, 2-1, the only time the two teams faced eachother back in the 2011 regular season and has never faced F&M. The second game of the opening round will be played at approximately 3:30 p.m. on Saturday with the two winning teams advancing to face off at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday afternoon. 

Christopher Newport has registered one of the finest seasons in program history heading into the national tournament, winning 16 of their 17 games this season. The Captains feature one of the toughest defenses in the nation, ranked ninth in goals-against average (0.369) while the offense is scoring a torrid 3.06 goals per game to rank in the nation's top-30. 

Leading the attack is All-American midfielder Riley Cook, who is the active NCAA leader in goals scored across all three divisions. She has scored 83 career goals, shattering the school and conference records for goals and points scored in a career, season, and game. This season, she was named Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year after leading the Captains' potent attack with 17 goals and four assists for 38 total points. Adding another dangerous option at the top of the CNU offense, senior Sarah Smith has been terrific in her first season wearing a Captains uniform with 17 points on seven goals and three assists. Five total Captains have scored in double figures so far this season. 

Defensively, fifth-year standout goalkeeper Haley Eiser has quietly put together one of the finest seasons in Division III this year. She ranks eighth nationally in goals against average with a 0.281 mark and sixth overall in save percentage at .915. Eiser has broken the program record for shutouts in a career and her GAA and save percentage stands atop the all-time charts as well. Playing in front of their veteran netminder, the Captains' starting back line of Sarah Rhiel, Re Slater, Jill McDonald, and Nyah Savage has been nearly impenetrable all season. The Captains have surrendered just six goals in nearly 1,600 minutes for a 0.35 goals against average. 

CNU is not the only team that will feature a dominant defense this weekend as the Franklin & Marshall vs. WestConn  matchup features goalies ranked 22nd and 23rd nationally in goals-against average. That means three of the four starting keepers in Newport News rank in the top-25 nationally in GAA. 

The Captains' opening round opponent, Cabrini, won the American East Conference with a penalty kick shootout win over Marywood in the conference finals. Entering Saturday's matchup with a 10-5-4 record, Cabrini is led by their veteran goalkeeper Ashley Tutzauer who owns a 0.70 goals-against average while playing all 1802:22 between the pipes this season. She has a career-high ten shutouts this season. 

WestConn will attack the stingy F&M defense with one of the nation's leading goal scorers as rookie Myah Croze enters the weekend ranking second with 26 goals in her first year. She has added seven assist and ranks second nationally in total points with 59. Teammate Suzana Imetovski has also recorded a 31-point showing this season with nine goals and 13 assists. 

Franklin & Marshall keeper Emily Senko has led the Diplomats to a 0.405 GAA this season, ranking 17th nationally. Senko ranks seventh in the country in save percentage with a .914 mark and picked up a career-defining shutout victory against No. 2 Johns Hopkins in the conference tournament semifinals. The freshman has allowed just five goals this season while playing just over a thousand minutes in net. 

Sunday afternoon's second round game will be played at 3:00 pm and the winners will advance to next weekend's sectional round. For ticket information, game times, press conference links, and more, check out the NCAA Tournament Microsite linked here and at the top of this page.