Live Stats // Video Stream
FREDERICKSBURG, Va. -- The fourth-ranked Christopher Newport field hockey team will wrap up the regular season on Saturday at 1 p.m. when the Captains square off against Mary Washington in a Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference tussle at the Battleground Turf Field.
Entering the weekend, the Captains sit at 15-0, including 8-0 on the road. Meanwhile, Mary Washington is 10-7 overall and 3-4 at home.
For those fans unable to attend the game, Mary Washington will provide live stats and a video stream of the action at UMWEagles.com. Direct links to both features can be found at the top of this release and on the schedule page.
Not only will Saturday's contest wrap up the regular season, but it will also determine the seeding for the upcoming league tournament. Christopher Newport has already claimed at least a share of the regular season conference title and would clinch the No. 1 seed in the playoffs with a victory against Mary Washington. Meanwhile, with a win of their own, the Eagles would also lay claim to a share of the league crown and force a three-way tiebreaker, which would be broken by comparing each team's scoring differential in conference games.
Saturday's showdown will also mark Christopher Newport's third outing this season at Mary Washington's Battleground Turf Field. Previously, the Captains defeated Rhodes, 6-0, and Denison, 5-0, in neutral-site tilts at the facility earlier this month.
Coming into the weekend, CNU ranks third in the nation in scoring defense, allowing just 0.47 goals per contest.
Lily Kerr has starred in the cage while compiling a .900 save percentage. That ranks third in the NCAA. Freshman
Ella Fallen has also appeared in eight contests and sports a 0.42 goals-against-average. Overall, the two have helped Christopher Newport record nine shutouts, which stands as the fifth-most in the country.
Along with the goalkeepers,
Brooke Billhimer recorded a defensive save in the team's 3-1 win over No. 5 Salisbury last week, while
Alexis Morales and
Chloe Thompson have also brushed aside on-target shots. The back line is holding opponents to a .064 shooting percentage this season, including a microscopic .026 mark in the month of October.
Meanwhile, on the other end, Christopher Newport ranks fifth in the NCAA in scoring offense with a 4.60 goals-per-game average. The Captains have deposited at least three goals in nine straight games, which stands as the longest run in the nation. Headlining the attack,
Abby Asuncion leads the team with 11 goals and 27 points, while Morales sits sixth in the entire country with 12 assists.
Mary Washington comes into Saturday on a two-game roll, including a 6-3 triumph over DePauw on Sunday. Against the Tigers, Grayson Scott registered her first collegiate hat-trick. The sophomore star now has four multi-goal efforts this season while boasting a league-high 14 strikes and 31 points.
Along with Scott, Emma Bernard is third in the league with 26 points. On the defensive end, Bailey McNabb has a 1.37 goals-against-average and .693 save percentage. Caroline Porter has a team-high three defensive saves as well.
In 24 previous meetings between the two programs, Christopher Newport holds an 18-6 edge in the series. The Captains posted a pair of wins last year, including a 6-2 triumph in the semifinals of the league tournament. During that bout, Asuncion recorded three goals and three assists. Her nine total points equaled the third-most by a Captain in program history.
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