NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- The nationally-ranked Christopher Newport men's soccer team will open the 2022 season with a seven-game homestand starting with a pair of games at Captains Field this weekend in the Steve Shaw Classic. The 11th-ranked Captains will host Eastern University on Friday, September 2 at 5:00 p.m. before taking on Moravian University on Saturday, September 3 at 5:00 p.m.
For fans unable to make it to Captains Field in person, live stats and a live video webcast will be available at CNUsports.com. Admission to the games is free of charge.
Christopher Newport enters the season-opening weekend in the team's third season under head coach
Justin Chezem. The Captains reached the sectional round of the NCAA Division III National Championship and finished the year with a 12-5-2 overall record.
The Captains own a 1-0-0 record all-time against Eastern and are 1-1-0 in the two all-time matchups against Moravian. Last season, the Eastern Eagles were 10-5-2 overall while Moravian finished the 2021 campaign with a 6-9-3 record. The Greyhounds last faced Christopher Newport in a neutral site bout during the 2003 season.
Offensively, the Captains leading scorers returning in 2022 are veterans
Chris Schram,
Owen Burnett, and
Jonathon Leiding. Schram ranked second on the team with four goals last season and finished the year with nine total points; Burnett added three goals and two assists with a game-winning strike and eight total points. Leiding was a 19-game starter on the back line and was named the Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference Tournament MVP after an impressive tournament leading to a five-point season, offensively.
Eastern returns both of it's double-digit scorers from last season in veterans Nik Kokolios and Evan Cope. Kokolios had 13 points on five goals and three assists while Cope added five goals and one helper for 11 points.
Moravian also welcomes back it's 2021 leading scorer in junior Reed Sturza, who finished the year with 14 points. Sturza scored six goals and added two assists while leading the team in attempts with 57 total shots.
Following the action this weekend, the Captains will stay comfortably at home for the first several weeks of the season. A seven-match homestand will continue next weekend with home games against Clarkson and Pfeiffer from September 10-11.
