NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Christopher Newport freshman Drew McWhinney scored the game-winning goal early in the first half and the Captains' men's soccer team tacked on two more in the second half to pull away from Salisbury University (4-3-4) on Saturday night, 3-0. The Captains showcased a full-games effort and pulled away from the Sea Gulls in a dominant Senior Night performance. 

After assisting on both goals against Roanoke College on Wednesday night, Christopher Newport sophomore Barry Jones made history on Saturday as he became the first Captain since before 2000 to record assists on four consecutive CNU goals. He picked up helpers on the first two goals against Salisbury and continued his standout season as a distributor from the outside with a team-leading six assists this year. 

The first assist came just over seven minutes into the first half when the Captains struck first off a rebuild down the right side. Manzi Siibo played a ball into the corner for Jones and the second-year midfielder sprinted to the ball for a cross. His ball was ripped hard into the box forcing the Salisbury keeper to make a play on it, but the Sea Gulls netminder could not corral the cross and McWhinney came blitzing in to put away the rebound for the score. 

The freshman now has five goals in his rookie campaign including three gamewinners. 

The teams worked through the remainder of the first half feeling out positioning and building chances but nothing materialized on either end. Sophomore goalkeeper Hayden Dewey made two of his three saves in the first half as Salisbury challenged from long distance on a pair of shots. 

An early corner kick in the second half shifted the tide and turned the game into a dominant CNU victory. After just over five minutes of play in the second stanza, Jones worked against a single defender to get a ball played over the end line for a corner kick. The sophomore grabbed the ball and set up the set piece from the corner with a low cross headed for the near post. Sneaking through the crowded box, senior defender Jonathon Leiding made a Senior Night memory with an exceptional diving header to re-direct the cross into the left side of the goal. 

With a 2-0 lead, the offense started to look more comfortable, ripping more shots on target as time ticked away. McWhinney nearly had a brace when he used nifty footwork to evade a trifecta of Sea Gulls defenders before slamming a shot off the right post. Jacob Dudley had his entire team off their seats on a beautiful run up the middle before the fifth-year defender deferred to Siibo on the offensive drive. 

The third goal would get cashed in during the 65th minute after a dazzling challenge by sophomore Caleb Jones to start a beautiful connection on the left side. After Salisbury tried to clear, Jones came sprinting back to steal the ball from his Sea Gulls counterpart and then turned the ball back upfield at around midfield. He found rookie Yazan Yaghmmour running into space; after the freshman drew a double-team, he slipped a centering pass for Siibo who unleashed a missile toward the left side of the goal. His shot was saved, but trickled away from the Salisbury keeper where Jones, who had kept running with the play, was there to finish for the score. 

In total, the Captains took 18 shots in the game including 13 after halftime. CNU put seven of those 13 shots on target after the break, challenging the Sea Gulls defense. The final shot count favored CNU, 18-7, with a 10-3 lead in shots on-goal. 

Christopher Newport improves to 6-0-1 at home this season and 28-2-7 all-time under the direction of head coach Justin Chezem. 

The Captains will return to action on Wednesday, October 11 as they host St. Mary's (Md.) for a 6:00 p.m. kickoff. CNU will then close out the regular season home slate with a matchup against No. 2 Mary Washington on Saturday, October 14 at 7:00 p.m.