NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Working around a nearly 70-minute lightning delay that impacted the first half of action, the sixth-ranked Christopher Newport women's soccer team endured a nearly three-hour marathon against Gettysburg College (0-2-1) before escaping with a 1-0 victory over the Bullets. The win marked the second straight 1-0 result against Gettysburg in back-to-back seasons and came by virtue of a penalty kick goal by Kyleigh Gough in the 24th minute of action. 

The win extends Christopher Newport's streak of consecutive games without a loss to 48, tying Wheaton (Ill.) -- from 2006 to 2008 -- for the fourth longest streak in NCAA Division III history. The Captains are 44-0-4 since the start of the 2021 season and now rank in the top-ten all-time in NCAA Women's Soccer across all three Divisions. 

CNU controlled most of the action early and got several solid opportunities going toward the goal. In the 22nd minute, midfielder Ellie Cox unleashed a laser that rattled the crossbar and the Captains converted on the rebound, but were whistled offsides to nullify the early score. Just minutes later, a foul in the box was whistled against the Bullets, awarding Christopher Newport a chance from the penalty spot. 

Sophomore midfielder Kyleigh Gough stepped up to deliver the shot and whipped in her first goal of the season with a strike. Just over a minute in the game later, lightning approached within the ten-mile radius of campus and a delay was called. With the first strike at 7:51, both teams headed to the locker rooms and would not return to the field until 8:57 p.m. After a short warmup, the two teams closed out the remaining 20 minutes of the first half without any further change to the scoreboard. 

Gettysburg amped up the pressure in the second half, but the Captains held them at bay for the second shutout of the season. Reanna Slater, Jackie Stallard, Bella DiTommaso, and Nyah Savage combined to hold the Bullets to just four total shots in the game and junior goalkeeper Jaya Daniel turned away both chances on goal to preserve the clean sheet. 

The game was the second half of a doubleheader on day one of the 2023 Captains Classic as fourth-ranked Virginia Wesleyan suffered a 2-0 defeat to Pacific Lutheran University in the opener. On Saturday, the 757 programs will swap opponents with the Marlins taking on Gettysburg at 5:00 p.m. followed by a 7:30 p.m. kickoff between the Captains and Lutes. All the action will be available online in live stats and a live video stream at CNUsports.com.