SALISBURY, Md. -- Battling until the bitter end, the sixth-ranked Christopher Newport field hockey team clawed back from a halftime deficit, fought through a pair of grueling overtime periods, and stayed close throughout a five-round shootout, but No. 2 Salisbury had just enough left to steal a 3-2 victory during a marathon thriller in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference Championship on Saturday evening at Sea Gull Stadium.

During the contest, Maddison Steele opened the scoring less than three minutes into regulation before Katie Abendschoen landed an equalizer in the second half, which helped force overtime. Later, Steele, Caroline Hughlett, and Courtney Hughlett all converted their attempts during the shootout session, but the Sea Gulls survived after capitalizing on four of their five tries.

On the other end, Brooke Billhimer was an 80-minute machine and picked up her seventh defensive save of the year, which moved her to fourth on the program's all-time single-season charts. Lily Kerr also chipped in with a series of acrobatic saves, while Ellie Nuckols came through with a game-saving stop on a breakaway in the second overtime period to headline a well-balanced effort on the defensive side.

With the setback, Christopher Newport dropped to 14-2 on the season, while Salisbury improved to 15-2 and claimed the program's 25th league title. Both teams will be on the lookout for bids to the upcoming NCAA Tournament, which begins with first-round action on Wednesday. The bracket will be released on Sunday at 9:30 p.m. during a selection show on NCAA.com.

After fighting to a 2-2 deadlock following four quarters of back-and-forth action, both teams settled in for some overtime excitement. Just over a minute into the extra session, Avery Mast deflected a pass along the offensive 25, spun into the circle, and connected with Caroline Hughlett, who had a turnaround tracer kicked away by the keeper.

Later, following an interception by Billhimer on Salisbury's first rally, Christopher Newport went back on the attack. Keeping the ball planted on the offensive end, Caroline Hughlett prevented a clear after driving a defender into the turf in the right corner, while Steele badgered a pair of Sea Gulls and forced an errant pass along the left boundary.

Looking to capitalize on the pressure, Kendall Gibson chipped a feed inside to Steele, who quickly drew a corner in the 67th minute. Taking the insert, Courtney Hughlett weaved through traffic and found a little space, but Salisbury swarmed her on the interior to quiet the final scoring opportunity of the period.

In the second overtime session, Nuckols stole the show in the 71st minute. After a long hit bounced past CNU's defense and landed on the stick of a Salisbury attacker near midfield, the hosts had a breakaway. With nothing but open spaces, the Sea Gull stormed down the field, but Nuckols was undeterred.

Starting 10 yards behind the attacker, the All-Region track & field star capitalized on her otherworldly athleticism. Making up ground in a flash, she caught up to the Sea Gull at the top of the arc and ripped the ball right off her stick before a shot could be taken.

Moments later, on the other side of the field, Caroline Hughlett had a shot swallowed by a Salisbury defender, while her sister outran three Sea Gulls during a solo surge, but her run was eventually thwarted in the left corner.

Continuing the back-and-forth affair, Salisbury earned a corner in the 76th minute, but Billhimer saved the day. Although the Sea Gulls skipped a shot over Kerr's outstretched pads, Billhimer stayed deep and grabbed the bouncer just before it snuck inside the right post.

Remaining vigilant on the back line, Billhimer plucked two more rollers that nearly sprung a pair of breakaways, while Gibson bottled up a push along the left edge of the arc. Later, with a 3-on-1 forming in the final minute of the stanza, Billhimer came back and ripped the ball away at midfield before jump-starting CNU's final offensive rush.

With mere seconds left on the clock, Courtney Hughlett found her sister stationed on the left side of the circle. Although four Sea Gulls flooded the zone, Caroline Hughlett threaded a feed to Delaney Norr. Trying to put a perfect punctuation mark on the contest, the senior unloaded a laser that was kicked away by the keeper.

Incredibly, Norr collected her own rebound and had another opportunity, but her second-chance missile was knocked away by a diving defender along the left post to cap off a highlight-filled overtime session.

With nothing left but the shootout, both teams settled in for one last showcase. For the Captains, Steele connected on her try after cutting to her right, sprinting past the keeper, and knocking home a dart along the post. Seconds later, on Salisbury's second run, Kerr hit the deck to wall off a ground assault, which forced an aerial attempt to sail over the crossbar.

Continuing the shootout, Caroline Hughlett went to her backhand with a successful shot from the left side of the circle. Then, her sister broke the ankles of Salisbury's goalie with a devastating cut before banging home CNU's third successful attempt.

Unfortunately, the hosts were equally effective and eventually converted three straight shots to ice a 4-3 win in the shootout. 

Long before the Sea Gulls locked up the league title, Christopher Newport got off on the right foot in the first quarter. Jumping out to a quick lead, the Captains struck in the third minute. After gaining possession on the defensive side of the field, Billhimer laced a 40-yard seed that cut through the Sea Gulls and landed on Norr's stick. Flashing her speed, the senior quickly ran past a defender, cut along the baseline, and whipped a pinpoint pass towards the left post.

On the receiving end, Steele slipped behind the keeper, dipped low, and redirected the pass into the back of the cage for a 1-0 advantage.

Remarkably, that was Steele's fourth career goal against Salisbury, moving her past former legends Abby Asuncion and Haylie Black as the program's all-time leading scorer against the Sea Gulls.

Looking to retaliate, Salisbury tried to respond, but Billhimer stole a dribbler that cut inside the circle before clearing the threat with an aerial. Moments later, Courtney Hughlett battled through contact along the edge of the arc to snuff out another run before Morgan Shealer grabbed control of a long roller that spun dangerously close to the cage.

Although the hosts eventually picked up a corner in the final moments of the opening quarter, Gibson put together a magnificent performance to stymie the threat. Staying deep, she bottled up an initial pass towards the center of the circle before blocking a second-chance tracer along the right post to keep the one-goal lead.

In the second quarter, Salisbury continued to attack, but CNU held firm. Kerr made a fantastic save while staying in front of an elevated deflection during an early scrum. Shortly thereafter, the Sea Gulls collected three consecutive corners, but the Captains shrugged off the assault.

On the first attempt, Billhimer cut off an initial rush, Kerr made a diving save to her right, and Gibson blocked a shot towards the opposite pipe. Later, Kerr came back with another kick save on the second try before Courtney Hughlett walled off a hit from the left corner, while Kerr punted a screamer from the opposite direction to polish off a perfect stretch.

Sadly, Salisbury never relented and scored twice during a 50-second onslaught in the middle of the stanza to steal a 2-1 edge.

Looking for more, the Sea Gulls continued to push forward, but CNU regrouped on the back end. Nuckols won possession of a spinner at the top of the circle, while Riley Iasiello blocked a pass in the left corner and found Steele screaming up the field for a successful clear.

Although the hosts returned to the offensive end just before halftime, the Captains clamped down again. On Salisbury's fourth corner of the period, Billhimer picked off a feed in front of the cage after Courtney Hughlett applied pressure at the top of the arc. Moments later, Abendschoen wrestled possession away from a Sea Gull near the right elbow before Iasiello cruised up the center of the turf to end SU's final rally.

Following the break, Christopher Newport suffocated the opposition on the defensive end. Shealer stayed on the hip of an attacker and forced a ball to roll out-of-bounds during a 3-on-2 rush in the 33rd minute. Then, Lainey Pratzner absolutely picked the pockets of a midfielder while pinned to the right sideline before teaming with Steele and Mast on a successful triple-team near the offensive 25.

Still blanketing the field, Pratzner stole another clear attempt before Steele rode a defender across the left sideline to flip possession.

Trying to capitalize, the visitors earned a corner in the 35th minute. After a perfect insert by Norr, Courtney Hughlett unleashed a no-look, behind-the-back pass to Abendschoen. With Salisbury struggling to catch up, the senior star hit the brakes, cut around a defender, and whistled a one-timer inside the left post to even the score at two. 

Trading rallies, two Sea Gulls slipped free in the middle of the stanza, but Courtney Hughlett caught up to the play and kept a lid on the surge until reinforcements arrived on the scene. Then, just two minutes later, Billhimer broke up a rush near the left sideline with a wonderful one-on-one tackle.

Meanwhile, on the offensive end, Lindsey Loar took possession along the baseline and was mauled by several defenders. Without a clean look at the cage, she stayed calm, turned, and flipped the ball into a Sea Gull to secure a last-minute corner. Unfortunately, Courtney Hughlett's ensuing blast was handled by the goalie.

On even ground entering the fourth quarter, the Captains continued to handle Salisbury's advances. Gibson stayed with an attacker who tried to spin free along the right side of the circle, while Shealer buried a Sea Gull in the turf along the opposite sideline.

Following the defensive stand, Christopher Newport cleared the back end and tried to steal a late lead. On a pair of corners, Abendschoen and Caroline Hughlett unloaded on-target nukes, but Salisbury's keeper was up to the challenge. Although the hosts tried to retaliate, Abendschoen built a blockade along the left sideline, while Pratzner killed off a pair of clears up the right boundary.

With time ticking down, CNU was hit with a card but still shined while playing 10-on-11. Gibson intercepted an aerial, while Billhimer stoned a rush along the right baseline. Courtney Hughlett also had a pair of picks to help kill off the card before Shealer added the final highlight of regulation.

In the final minute, the Sea Gulls got loose on a fast-break, but Shealer was unfazed. Flashing her wheels, she stayed in the face of the attacker and eventually forced her across the baseline to cause a turnover and run out the clock.

Incredibly, after 60 minutes of nonstop action in regulation, both teams managed 20 more minutes of back-and-forth fireworks in overtime before an exciting five-round shootout. Sadly, after all of that, Salisbury was able to land the final blow and lock up the win.

Overall, Christopher Newport held a 14-8 advantage in shots and an 8-6 edge in penalty corners. Kerr finished with three saves for the Captains, while Abbey McIlvain contributed eight for the Sea Gulls.

For their work during the game, Billhimer, Caroline Hughlett, and Courtney Hughlett were all named to the All-Tournament Team.

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