UNION, N.J. -- Storming out to a six-goal advantage in the opening period, the eighth-ranked Christopher Newport men's lacrosse team never looked back as the Captains cruised past Kean, 19-7, during a Coastal Lacrosse Conference contest on Saturday afternoon at Alumni Stadium.

Against the Cougars, five players registered multi-goal efforts, including five strikes from Kevin Miller. The first-year phenom also contributed three assists while finishing with a season-high eight points. That equaled the second-highest single-game output by a freshman in program history, trailing only Andrew Evans' nine-point eruption against Tri-State on March 8, 2008.

Along with Miller, Andrew Cook chipped in with seven points, including four goals, while Drew Miller, Alex Brendes, and Fred Fulkerson all had two daggers apiece.

Helping control possession throughout the contest, Warner Cabaniss won 17 of his 21 faceoffs and snatched 12 ground balls. Meanwhile, freshman goalie Declan McCulloch earned his first career start and rewarded the Captains with eight saves in the first three quarters.

With the victory, Christopher Newport improved to 9-4 on the season, including 2-1 in conference play. The setback dropped Kean to 8-6 overall and 0-3 against league competition.

Bolting out to a fast lead, the Captains jumped on the Cougars in the early going. Kevin Miller opened the scoring after finding a sliver of daylight between a defender and the goalie on a rip from the right side. Moments later, Cook battled through contact and snapped off a screamer with a stick in his face before Brendes unloaded an absolute bomb from 15 yards out.

Meanwhile, on the defensive side, McCulloch made his presence felt. During a man-down situation in the middle of the period, he made a gorgeous save from his knees before adding another stop on a long-range rocket. AJ Rosacker also had a strip to kill off a subsequent surge, which kept a lid on the high-powered Kean attack.  

Later, the offense continued to pick apart the Cougars on the other side of the field. Kicking off a late push, the Millers orchestrated a beautiful brother-to-brother connection as Kevin dished to Drew, who twisted a shot around the keeper after uncorking a slick, behind-the-back bullet.

Continuing the assault, Fulkerson spun past a defender behind the crease before stinging a low liner around the legs of the goalie, while Drew Miller came back with his second dart after capitalizing on a feed from Cook.

Staring at a 6-0 deficit, Kean grabbed some momentum after scoring a last-second goal at the end of the first quarter and an early strike in the second stanza.

Searching for an answer, the Captains turned to Brendes. The fifth-year star bolted down the left alley while dodging multiple Cougars. Eventually, the entire defense vacated the right side of the field, which left Kevin Miller open for a dunk on the doorstep.

Later, the visitors won a battle among defensemen during back-to-back rallies. After a Kean long-pole slipped free on a fast break, Brandon Young ran over and dropped the hammer to force a turnover. Capitalizing on the other end, a pair of defensive midfielders teamed up for CNU. Luke Nardone handed possession to Ryan Almassian, who buried a bolt inside the right post.

Stretching the lead, Cabaniss came through with a quick faceoff win before Drew Miller found his younger brother cutting down the center of the field for CNU's ninth tally. As the momentum grew, the visitors hit the opposition from every angle. Cook connected on his second goal with a high-to-low laser before Brett Jackson joined the party with a low-to-high hammer.

Filling up the highlight reel in the 25th minute, Cook broke out a no-look flip to Kevin Miller, who made a sliding grab and sank a bouncer from his backside along the crease. Shortly thereafter, Cook completed his first-half hat-trick after absorbing contact from three different defenders during a run up the gut, while Miller landed his fifth missile off a worm-burner in the final minute. 

After the break, the defense set the tone in the third quarter. Mark Davison blocked an early bounce shot, while McCulloch made a stop on a pointblank blast. Meanwhile, Brett Kelley pieced together a fantastic one-man show during another rally. The freshman played tight defense to force a low-percentage, turnaround tracer. Moments later, he tangled up a second Cougar on a run near the right post before winning a race to the sideline to flip possession.

Continuing the solid work on the back end, Nardone and Colin DeGrassi both added deflections during a lengthy surge by Kean. Moments later, McCulloch came through with another save from his knees, while Davison and Henry Crean joined forces on a successful double-team, which forced a turnover.

Following his work on the defensive end, Crean capitalized on the other side after sidestepping a defender before ripping from long range.

Back on the attack, Brendes polished off the third quarter with a diving dart after dipping underneath a pair of defenders along the right post.

Holding a 16-5 lead entering the fourth quarter, the Captains eased into the victory. Cook kicked off the final period with his fourth strike before Fulkerson added his second tally after capitalizing on a nice pick by Easton Lanclos. Later, Logan Shassian added the final nail after spinning around a defender at the top of the zone before slamming a scorcher into the top right corner of the net.

Meanwhile, on the back end, CNU continued to wall off the cage. Between the pipes, three different goalies brushed aside shots in the final stanza. Zac Hanway swallowed back-to-back attempts early in the period before Mason Bellinger did the same, including a nice stop on an ankle-level laser. Later, Trey Landolfi wrapped up the contest with a chest save in the final moments to seal the win.

Overall, Christopher Newport held a 44-38 advantage in shots and a 40-23 lead in ground balls. The visitors also won 22 of the game's 30 faceoffs, including four triumphs by Michael Brost.

CNU will return to action on Wednesday when the team heads to Mary Washington for a 3:30 p.m. battle.

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