ASHLAND, Va. -- Erupting for 11 goals in the second half, the fourth-ranked Christopher Newport men's lacrosse team overcame an early deficit and rallied over the final 30 minutes to sink Randolph-Macon, 14-12, during a non-conference battle on Saturday afternoon at Nunnally Field.

Trailing by two at halftime, the Captains quickly regained control with a seven-goal surge in the third quarter, which flipped the script and gave the visitors all the momentum they would need. After his record-setting performance last week, Dylan Rice continued his offensive showcase with seven points while matching his career-high with four assists. Brady Altobello also added four goals, while Andrew Cook notched a hat-trick.

On the defensive end, Ryan Young came away with eight caused turnovers, which equaled the program record established by Brandon Moloney against Southern Virginia on April 19, 2016 and matched by Drew Cornell against Virginia Wesleyan on March 19, 2019. Meanwhile, Phoenix Hines also added four takeaways while helping anchor a defensive unit that kept a lid on the RMC attack as Christopher Newport pieced together its comeback bid.

With the victory, the Captains improve to 2-0 on the season, while the setback drops Randolph-Macon to 1-1.

In the opening period, the hosts stormed out to an early lead with a pair of quick strikes. Battling back, Young stepped up on the defensive end to knock down a pass along the crease before Coby Auslander burst up the field on a successful clear. Catching the defense in transition, the junior slipped a feed towards the left pipe before Drew Miller dunked on the doorstep to put the Captains on the board.

Following Christopher Newport's tally, Randolph-Macon regained a two-goal lead before the defense stepped up again. Quieting the RMC attack in the final minutes of the opening period, Miles Collins stepped up with a tremendous run. On back-to-back possessions, the senior disrupted a shot during an initial surge before bottling up another attacker on a second rally, which eventually led to a shot-clock violation.

Still staring at a 3-1 deficit entering the second stanza, the Captains began chipping away at Macon's lead. Less than a minute into the quarter, Rice connected with Altobello, who uncorked a one-hopper into the cage. Later, after the hosts were hit with a penalty, Altobello came back with an assist after feeding Cook, who laced a laser inside the left pipe for the squad's third tally.

Unfortunately, Randolph-Macon continued to foster a lead. The Yellow Jackets added a pair of strikes in the second quarter, despite an incredible man-down save by Zac Hanway, which saw him stone a pointblank rip from his knees along the right pipe.

Entering halftime down 5-3, Christopher Newport kicked off the third quarter in the midst of an extra-man situation. Taking advantage, Miller found Rice with a skip pass, which the senior quickly deposited in the cage. Less than a minute later, the Captains pulled even as Cook unleashed a sidewinder that just buzzed past Rice's earhole before burying itself behind the keeper.

Continuing the third-quarter onslaught, Alex Brendes tossed a lengthy feed to Rice, who caught it with a defender in his face. After a pump fake generated a little space, he unloaded from deep to give the Captains their first lead of the game at 6-5.

Retaliating, Randolph-Macon came right back. Although Auslander added a screamer from long range, the Yellow Jackets scored four of the game's next five goals to secure a 9-7 lead with four minutes left in the third period.

Looking for a response, the Captains found their rhythm on the offensive side while spreading out the attack. Kicking things off, Auslander whistled a strike from the left side before Rice fired a dart from the center. Moments later, Cook put a Yellow Jacket on skates with some fancy footwork at the top of the zone before slipping out to the right on the way to his third goal, which gave the visitors a 10-9 lead at the end of the third quarter.

With the momentum, Christopher Newport stretched its advantage early in the final stanza. Less than a minute into the period, Auslander found Altobello, who tucked a blast into the top right corner of the cage.

As the offense found its footing, the defense continued to shine all over the field. First, on the back end, Hanway made a nice stop and plucked a roller along the crease before Hines stormed up the turf on a successful clear. Although the Yellow Jackets eventually returned to the offensive end, the Captains clamped down again.

Hanway stoned another blast before Max Wayne bodied an attacker and forced an off-target shot. Later, Maxwell Gladieux shut off a pair of rollbacks along the right side, and Ryan Cammarata chopped down on a Yellow Jacket to prevent an attempt on the inside. After Wayne snared the loose ball, the senior defenseman rumbled coast-to-coast before ripping a rocket on the run to push the lead to 12-9.

Following Macon's first goal in nearly 11 minutes of game action, Christopher Newport had another answer. Rice served as the facilitator on back-to-back bullets by Altobello and Alex Brendes to snare a 14-10 lead with five minutes left in regulation.

Still fighting, the hosts answered with a pair of goals to inch back within two in the waning moments of the game. Looking to stem the tide, the Captains did a little yardwork to close out the contest. Coming up with crucial ground balls on both ends of the field, Aidan FitzGerald closed out Macon's final offensive rally with a key pick-up along the crease. Shortly thereafter, Miller secured a roller after an RMC save to keep possession in the final seconds, which helped wrap up the victory.

Overall, Christopher Newport held a 48-42 advantage in shots and a 42-32 lead in ground balls. Young had eight rollers to go along with his eight takeaways, while Warner Cabaniss had five ground balls. Cabaniss and Cole Evans also combined to win 11 of their 18 faceoff attempts, while Hanway finished with seven saves between the pipes.

The Captains will return to action on February 26 when the squad travels to Hampden-Sydney for a 1 p.m. showdown.

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