IWLCA National Poll

2021 Spring Sports Spectator Policy
Live Stats // Video Stream

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Continuing to climb up the national rankings, the Christopher Newport women's lacrosse team moved to 20th in the most recent IWLCA National Coaches Poll while preparing for the squad's top-25 showdown with No. 4 Salisbury on Wednesday evening at Jennings Family Stadium.
 
Picking up 138 points in the most recent rankings, the Captains finished in a tie for 20th with Mary Washington. Christopher Newport has steadily climbed in the rankings since entering the poll at 25th on March 22. Two weeks ago, the squad was slotted 23rd overall before vaulting to 21st on April 5.
 
In addition to Christopher Newport and Mary Washington, fellow Coast-to-Coast Conference members Salisbury and St. Mary's (Md.) remained in the top-25 as well. The Sea Gulls are currently fourth in the poll, while the Seahawks are 22nd.
 
On Wednesday, Christopher Newport will face its second straight top-20 battle when the team hosts No. 4 Salisbury at 7 p.m. Entering the game, the Captains currently sit at 8-5 on the season, including 3-3 in conference play. Meanwhile, Salisbury is 9-0 with a 4-0 mark against league competition.
 
Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, access to Wednesday's game will be limited to two designated family members of each player and coach on Christopher Newport's roster along with a select number of students and staff from the university. Opposing fans and other interested parties will not be permitted to attend the contest. For specific details on the spectator guidelines, please read the athletic department's 2021 spring sports policy, which is available at the top of this release.
 
For those fans unable to attend the game, live stats and a video stream of the action will be available at CNUsports.com. Direct links to both features can be found at the top of this release and on the schedule page.
 
Christopher Newport is coming off of a 12-8 victory against Mary Washington on Saturday which saw the Captains flip a four-goal halftime deficit into a four-goal victory. Cat Leighty led the remarkable rally with six points, while Kelsey Winters also added a hat-trick. Meanwhile, on the other end, Gracie Sanders established a new career-high with five takeaways, and Becca Creekmore finished with 10 saves to earn the win.
 
The victory marked the squad's third of the season over a nationally-ranked opponent, joining earlier triumphs against No. 20 St. Mary's (Md.) and No. 23 Lynchburg. Prior to the 2021 campaign, Christopher Newport had two wins against nationally-ranked opponents in the first 20 years of the women's lacrosse program.
 
Wednesday's showdown will continue a grueling gauntlet of top-flight competition for the Captains. They have faced eight top-25 opponents this season, including seven in their last eight outings. At home, the team is 3-1 against those programs, including Saturday's win over UMW.
 
Overall this season, Leighty is tied for the conference-lead with 36 goals, while Winters leads the way with 72 points and 43 assists. Additionally, Creekmore's 93 saves are also the most among league goalkeepers, while Sanders, Julia Iapicca, and Sam Wettengel all sit in the top-five in takeaways.
 
Salisbury comes into the midweek match-up on a lengthy layoff. The Sea Gulls have not competed since their 17-14 win over the Captains on April 3. Despite the downtime, Alexis Strobel continues to rank second in the league with 57 points and 41 assists. Mary Claire Hisle also sits second in the conference with a 9.19 goals-against-average. Meanwhile, Carrie Hesen boasts a team-high 11 caused turnovers, 15 ground balls, and 28 draw controls.
 
In their last match-up with the Captains, the Sea Gulls were led by Strobel, who had four goals and four assists. Erin Scannell also came through with nine draw controls. Christopher Newport picked up six points from Kendall Krause, five goals from Zoe Dyer, and five assists from Leighty. Iapicca and Lindsay Connell also found the back of the cage during a four-goal surge in the second half, which evened the score at 13 with 15 minutes remaining in regulation.
 
Overall, Wednesday's match-up will mark the 22nd meeting between the two programs. Salisbury currently holds a 21-0 edge in the series.
 
Following the midweek contest, Christopher Newport will return to action on Saturday when the team heads to Moravian for an 11 a.m. tilt.
 
---ISH---