ST. MARY'S CITY, Md. -- With a goal in the 61st minute of action, the 19th-ranked Christopher Newport men's soccer team halted a 12-game unbeaten streak by the St. Mary's College of Maryland Seahawks and pulled out a 1-0 win on the road. Defender Jonathon Leiding scored for the Captains, who improved to 9-2-1 with the victory on Saturday, and the Captains' back line secured the team's eighth shutout of the season. 

Leiding snagged his first goal of the season after a corner kick was not cleared by the St. Mary's defense. Leiding collected the loose ball at the top of the box, cut back on one defender and unleashed a laser into the back of the net to put the CNU offense on top, 1-0. 

CNU is now unbeaten in eight of the last nine games with seven shutouts in that stretch. Leiding and the rest of the Captains' defense has led the way this season with a .750 shutout percentage and just seven goals surrendered through the first 12 games. On Saturday, CNU shut down one of the nation's top offensive units, averaging more than three goals per game, by holding the Seahawks to just a single shot on goal. 

The back line, headlined by full game efforts from Leiding and Ryan Kiely, included Jonah Fitz, Chris Schram, and Jacob Dudley on Saturday. Fifth-year senior goalkeeper Ethan Larson needed make just one save in the clean sheet for his sixth solo shutout of the season. He has started all 12 games and played all but 59 minutes of action, boasting a 0.63 goals-against average for CNU. 

The Captains' lone goal came in the 61st minute when Matt Liss started a play through Mason Field in the midfield. A shot came off the Captains' that was saved out of bounds by the St. Mary's goalkeeper, giving the CNU attack a corner kick taken by Elton Quintanilla. His first effort was headed away by a Seahawks defender, but it was Leiding at the top of the box collecting the rebound and cutting back to the center of the field. He ripped a right-footed shot into the upper 90 on the right side for the lead and the eventual gamewinner. 

In total, CNU outshot the St. Mary's vaunted attack by a final tally of 16-11, including a 5-1 edge in shots on frame. CNU took 11 corner kicks to just three by the home team, while Brendan Todd led all shooters with four taken in the game. 

Christopher Newport will return home for a Wednesday evening matchup against Salisbury to close out the home slate in 2022. CNU takes on the Sea Gulls at 5:00 p.m.