KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- After an outstanding run through the 2021 postseason, the Christopher Newport men's soccer program concludes the year ranked No. 11 in the final United Soccer Coaches Division III Top 25. The Captains haul in their highest national designation in the Chezem era and the best ranking for the squad since early in the 2016 season.
With the spot in the top-15, Christopher Newport also collected their finest national ranking in the final poll since 2014 when the Captains finished ranked No. 7 overall. CNU shot up from No. 24 in the last regular season rankings after winning a pair of games in the NCAA Tournament and battling against top-ranked national semifinalist Washington & Lee in the Round of 16.
In his third year at the helm, head coach
Justin Chezem has led Christopher Newport back into the national spotlight with another standout campaign in 2021. The Captains finished the year with a 12-5-2 overall record while capturing the team's first conference championship since 2016. CNU advanced to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in program history and the first since 2014.
Heading into the sectional matchup with the No. 1 Generals, Christopher Newport had pieced together a tear, winning nine of ten games while scoring multiple goals in all but one of those victories. The big run at the end of the season including a 2-1 win over Mary Washington in the Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference Championship, along with a 3-0 win over Eastern Connecticut State in the NCAA Tournament first round and a 1-0 victory on the road against Rowan in the second round.
The two wins to start the 2021 NCAA Tournament extended a program-best 380 minute postseason shutout streak that extended beyond the 400-minute mark before W&L finally scored the first goal ever allowed in the postseason under head coach
Justin Chezem. The defense was led by All-Region center back
Davis Pillow and the Captains registered six shutouts this season with a 1.07 goals-against average.
The Captains faced the toughest schedule in the nation this year, taking on eight teams that made the 2021 NCAA Tournament, including two final four teams.
NATIONAL - POLL 10 - DECEMBER 7, 2021
| Rank |
School |
Prev |
W-L-T |
| 1 |
Connecticut College |
6 |
19-4-2 |
| 2 |
Amherst College |
19 |
17-3-2 |
| 3 |
Washington & Lee University |
1 |
18-2-2 |
| 4 |
University Of Chicago |
10 |
16-6-1 |
| 5 |
Messiah University |
8 |
19-2-2 |
| 6 |
Tufts University |
7 |
15-2-4 |
| 7 |
North Park University |
RV |
16-6-0 |
| 8 |
Middlebury College |
NR |
13-5-3 |
| 9 |
Calvin University |
16 |
17-4-2 |
| 10 |
SUNY Cortland |
5 |
18-3-1 |
| 11 |
Christopher Newport University |
24 |
12-5-2 |
| 12 |
University of Redlands |
NR |
17-3-1 |
| 13 |
Trinity University (Texas) |
2 |
14-2-2 |
| 14 |
Washington College (Md.) |
NR |
15-5-1 |
| 15 |
St. Olaf College |
12 |
19-3-1 |
| 16 |
John Carroll University |
NR |
14-4-2 |
| 17 |
Kenyon College |
14 |
16-3-1 |
| 18 |
Hanover College |
NR |
16-5-1 |
| 19 |
Franklin & Marshall College |
4 |
15-4-1 |
| 20 |
Washington University (Mo.) |
3 |
13-3-1 |
| 21 |
Ohio Wesleyan University |
18 |
15-3-2 |
| 22 |
Emory University |
17 |
9-4-5 |
| 23 |
Montclair State University |
11 |
17-4-1 |
| 24 |
Otterbein University |
9 |
15-2-4 |
| 25 |
Stevens Institute Of Technology |
NR |
13-6-3 |
Records shown are final 2021 records.
Also receiving votes: New York University, Johns Hopkins University, Rowan University, Massachusetts Institute Of Technology, Claremont-McKenna-Harvey Mudd-Scripps Colleges, Kean University, Pacific Lutheran University, Gustavus Adolphus College, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
