NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Pouring in a career-high seven goals, Drew Miller headlined a historic offensive assault by the fourth-ranked Christopher Newport men's lacrosse team as the Captains toppled Berry, 26-12, on a frigid Saturday afternoon at Jennings Family Stadium.

Against the Vikings, Miller finished with eight total points. His seven strikes equaled the fourth-most in program history, while his three man-up tallies tied the school record, matching the lethal eruptions by Brett Jackson against Catholic on March 4, 2023 and John Thompson against Coast Guard on March 13, 2015.

With his performance on Saturday, Miller became just the fifth Captain to eclipse 200 career points, joining current teammates Alex Brendes and Coby Auslander as well as longtime legends Dylan Rice and Matt Crist. Additionally, he became the eighth player to reach 100 career goals. His 102 strikes are now tied for seventh on the all-time charts, matching the output by Christopher Newport Hall of Famer Randy Foster, who was on hand to watch Miller's performance as one of the two broadcasters calling the game.

Along with Miller, Andrew Cook added his 122nd career goal, moving past former standout Will Geise for fourth on the program's career charts. Incidentally, Geise was the other broadcaster calling Saturday's action alongside Foster.

Stuffing the stat sheet, Brendes also added four goals and three assists, while Coby Auslander had two of each. Overall, 15 Captains contributed at least one point during the contest. Meanwhile, the 26 total goals matched the sixth-highest single-game output in school lore.

While the offense was clicking, the Captains were equally impressive in other facets of the game. CNU collected 29 takeaways, which equaled the third-most in program history. Additionally, the squad's 26 faceoff wins were the fifth-highest total by the squad.

Helping the hosts control possession, Warner Cabaniss won 17 of his 26 battles and scooped up 13 ground balls. His 13 rollers tied the eighth-most by a Captain, matching his own performance from the season opener against Hampden-Sydney last Saturday.

On the defensive end, eight players notched at least two takeaways. AJ Rosacker led all long-sticks with three strips, while Miller added four to go along with his work on the offensive end.

With the victory, Christopher Newport improved to 2-0 on the season, while the setback dropped Berry to 1-3.

In the opening period, the Captains slipped out to an early 3-1 lead. Brendes and Miller led the initial surge, while Ryan Cammarata added some long-pole lightning after Cook killed off a clear with a takeaway near midfield. Later, Miller came back with his second strike after tucking a blast inside the left post before Ryan Almassian stonewalled a last-second push by the visitors with a ruthless assault that tied up multiple Berry midfielders.

Although the Captains found themselves knotted at four entering the second stanza, the hosts quickly took control. Headlining the early action, Cook sank a low liner to break the deadlock before connecting with Robby Adams on a nice fake and finish along the doorstep. Later, Brendes circled the entire Berry defense before slamming home the squad's third goal in just over two minutes of action, which gave the hosts a 7-4 edge.

Meanwhile, the defense continued to clamp down. Jackson forced a turnover on a failed clear after bodying up a defender, which jostled the ball loose along the right sideline. Moments later, Mark Davison and Ryan Young joined forces on a huge double-team. The two standouts collapsed down on an isolated Viking and ripped away both his stick and the ball before flipping the field.

On the other end, after a two-minute penalty was assessed to a Berry defender, Miller made the visitors pay with back-to-back man-up goals. Shortly thereafter, Jackson buried a blast under the crossbar, Miller added his fifth of the first half, and Auslander converted along the right post to steal a 12-5 edge entering the break.

In the third quarter, Christopher Newport continued to set the tone with electric plays all over the field. Early on, Rosacker absolutely dropped the hammer on a Viking, who was attempting to complete a clear. Eventually, the second-year star popped the ball loose near midfield, which Jackson quickly corralled.

Capitalizing on the defensive performance, Jackson floated a feed over three defenders, which jump-started a breakaway by Henry Crean. Bolting up the field with a clear path to the cage, he eventually struck from close range for the team's 13th tally. 

Continuing to generate goals in transition, Rosacker and Miller both slammed the door on back-to-back clear attempts, which led to a long-range rocket from Cam Foti and another screamer by Brendes.

After that, the floodgates opened as the Captains scored six straight goals over the final seven minutes of the third period. During the surge, Miller added his final two goals, including a gorgeous play in the final seconds to clean up some trash around the crease. The late push also included the first career goal by Jackson Shaw, who blistered a missile into the top right corner of the cage after winning a one-on-one battle with a defender

With little left to prove, Christopher Newport added five more goals over the final 15 minutes. Carson Hoffman hit the Vikings with a beautiful bounce shot before Bennett Spruell skipped his own stinger off the turf. Later, Fred Fulkerson reversed course behind the cage and whipped a low liner around the right post.

Showing off some physicality as well, Jude MacLean dropped his shoulder and bulldozed a defender to create some space, which quickly led to Spruell's second tally of the period. Then, in the final minutes, Logan Shassian broke down a defender during a one-on-one situation before unloading from his knees to add the final punctuation mark.

Overall, CNU held a 67-20 advantage in shots and a 53-28 edge in ground balls. The hosts also won 26 of the game's 42 faceoffs, including seven by Michael Brost and one apiece by Dallas Pulliam and Connor Bade.

Christopher Newport will return to action on February 24 when the squad hosts Stevenson at 4 p.m.

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