NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Breaking one of the oldest records in program history, Abby Asuncion established a new school standard for goals with her 42nd career strike while leading the 11th-ranked Christopher Newport field hockey team to a 6-1 victory over St. Mary's (Md.) on a sun-splashed Saturday afternoon at Jennings Family Stadium.

With a rocket off a corner in the 40th minute, Asuncion set a new scoring standard at CNU. Her 42nd goal eclipsed the previous record of 41, which was originally established by Christopher Newport Hall of Famer Wendy Wilson from 2000-02. It was later matched by former legend Ashley Traylor from 2005-07 and fellow Hall of Famer Belle Tunstall from 2011-14.

Asuncion's tally also marked her 102nd career point, moving past Wilson for second on the school's all-time charts. Fittingly, Wilson attended Saturday's game and was one of the first people to congratulate Asuncion on the sidelines after the contest.

One of the nation's elite scorers, Asuncion has put on a clinic during her time with the Captains. A consistent offensive threat since arriving as a freshman in 2019, she has tormented the opposition throughout her career. Among her exploits, she has scored against 19 different programs in 10 separate stadiums across six states ranging from Wisconsin to Tennessee. During that time, she has 11 multi-goal outings and four hat-tricks. Both of those are tied for the most in program history.

Along with the record-setter, Katie Abendschoen, Caroline Hughlett, and Alexis Morales notched three points apiece, while Emily Evans and Lindsey Loar also added strikes of their own. Meanwhile, on the defensive side, CNU held the opposition to only five on-target shots. Lily Kerr collected four saves in 45 minutes of work while notching her 17th career victory, tying Stephanie McKinney for the sixth-most in school lore.

With the win, the Captains improved to 5-0 on the season, while the setback dropped St. Mary's (Md.) to 3-2.

Before the offense stole the show over the final three quarters, the defense pieced together an electric effort during the first 15 minutes of the contest. Brushing aside several early advances by the Seahawks, Brooke Billhimer picked off a pass near the 25 before Lainey Pratzner broke up a rally along the left sideline.

Moments later, St. Mary's secured back-to-back corners, but Christopher Newport slammed the door on both opportunities. Kicking off her historic afternoon, Asuncion served as the flyer and blocked a shot on the first attempt before Kendall Gibson deflected a blast on the second try.

Later, after the visitors withstood a sustained surge by the Captains, Ellie Nuckols ripped possession away from an attacker along the arc to help thwart St. Mary's final rally of the first quarter.

In the second stanza, CNU went to work on the offensive side of the field. Just over a minute into the period, Abendschoen swiped the ball off the stick of a midfielder. After winning the duel along the circle, she spun through two more defenders before rifling a one-timer into the right corner of the cage for a 1-0 lead.

Less than a minute later, the Captains padded their advantage. Following a corner, Asuncion laced a screamer from the top of the arc. Although the defense handled the initial bullet, Morales secured the rebound. With a Seahawk on her hip, she turned and chipped a seed inside to Hughlett, who boxed out a defender and deflected the ball along the right post for a 2-0 edge.

With momentum firmly planted on Christopher Newport's side of the field, the hosts added a third goal for good measure. In the 26th minute, Evans inserted the ball off a corner attempt. After the Captains worked possession around the circle, Nuckols settled a bouncer and unloaded a dart into a crowd along the left pipe.

Fighting with three defenders and the goalie, Evans found herself in the perfect position to escort the ball through the mob and into the cage for the squad's third strike of the period.

Staring at a 3-0 deficit, the Seahawks nearly broke through in the waning moments of the first half. After a bouncer skipped past a pair of defenders, St. Mary's had a one-on-one with Kerr. Unfazed by the situation, the sophomore goalie hit the turf and made a sliding stop to break up the initial push. Seconds later, after Pratzner and Avi McWhorter disrupted a follow-up attempt, Kerr regained her footing and punted the rebound out of the circle.

Looking to end the surge, Maddison Steele carried the ball out of harm's way before Chloe Thompson lofted an aerial down the field to help close out the quarter.

After halftime, Christopher Newport went back to work on the offensive end. Just three minutes into the third frame, Abendschoen settled an insert from Pratzner before lining a pass deep into the circle. Splitting a pair of defenders, the feed found its way to Loar, who redirected the ball past the defense for her third goal of the season.

Clutching a 4-0 lead, the Captains continued their domination on the defensive end as well. In the middle of the quarter, Courtney Hughlett blocked a shot by the Seahawks. Although the visitors eventually earned a pair of corners, Gibson deflected a rip on the first try before Thompson walled off the right pipe to kill off the second attempt.

Minutes later, after St. Mary's returned to the offensive zone, Nuckols intercepted a long centering feed before Billhimer handled a tough bouncer into the circle. Shortly thereafter, Gibson helped stymie the Seahawks' fourth corner of the period after applying sustained pressure to a pair of players along the arc.

With time ticking down in the third quarter, Asuncion came through with the record-breaker. Off a corner in the 40th minute, Evans inserted a pristine pass to Asuncion, who was stationed at the top of the circle. Avoiding the flyer, she simply curled to her right and unleashed an absolute scorcher that tattooed the back of the cage for her 42nd career tally.

In the final frame, St. Mary's cut its deficit back down to four before the Captains retaliated. After having a goal waved off earlier in the period, Morales made amends in the 49th minute.

Following a nice pick by Thompson on the defensive end, the senior slipped a pass up to Caroline Hughlett, who outran a pair of defenders while crossing midfield. Continuing to march forward, the first-year phenom blistered a feed that bounced off the stick of two defenders and settled in front of Morales. Clearly inside the circle this time, she took the ball and peppered a laser inside the right post for her second goal of the year.

With little left to prove, the hosts kept the ball planted on St. Mary's side of the field for the remainder of the contest. Joelie Erwin helped force a pair of errant passes on clear attempts, Nuckols bottled up two runs of her own, and Gibson eliminated a last-minute push to help close out the victory.

Overall, Christopher Newport held a 37-10 advantage in shots and an 11-6 edge in corners. Meanwhile, along with Kerr's work in the cage over the first three frames, Ella Fallen cleaned up in the fourth quarter to help lock up the triumph.

The Captains will return to action on Wednesday at 6 p.m. when the team hosts No. 22 Catholic.

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