NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- One night after earning a hard-fought tie against the No. 3-ranked team in the country, the 13th-ranked Christopher Newport men's soccer team secured a thrilling 1-0 win against No. 9 Rowan University (2-3-3) behind a goal in the final ten minutes scored by Manzi Siibo. The Captains closed out an eight-game homestand to start the 2024 season without a loss, improving to 5-0-3 on the year with the win while Rowan, who has faced five ranked teams in the last six games, drops to 2-3-3 on the season. 

The nationally-ranked showdown came on a night that the Captains welcomed over 75 men's soccer alumni back to Captains Field to celebrate the 50th season in program history. The 2024 version of the CNU Men's Soccer team is the 50th rendition and during halftime, CNU announced the addition of the very first team, the 1974 Captains, to the Gerard Mosley Wall of Fame. 

With the festivities, a season-high crowd of over 700 was on hand to witness the dramatic finish created by Manzi Siibo. The sophomore forward was electric throughout the second half, creating countless opportunities and wrestling the ball from multiple defenders as the half waged on. He subbed out of the game for just seven minutes in the second half and as soon as he returned, the Haymarket, Va. native continued his relentless attack on the Profs defense. 

It was in the 82nd minute when all of his hard work would pay off after a bevy of Christopher Newport offensive chances finally found the back of the net. The Captains showed off their ball-handling skills when Caleb Jones squirted free between two defenders on the sideline to get loose on an offensive chance. He passed the ball down the right side for Barry Jones, who called his own number and ripped a hard shot that was punched away by the goalkeeper. On the ensuing play, Yazan Yaghmmour controlled the first touch and played a pass back to rookie defender Declan Karney; Karney then played a long pass back through the middle for Mason Field. 

Field took his first touch and then tried to swing through a second but contact with a defender was ruled a play-on situation in an advantage for the Captains as the ball ricocheted to the feet of Manzi Siibo. He surveyed the field, took three touches into open space, and then drove a pin-point accurate strike into the right pocket of the goal, beyond the outstretched hands of the Rowan goalkeeper. 

His fourth goal of the season stood up as his second gamewinner as the Captains defense locked up the shutout in the final nine minutes of play. In that clean sheet, Karney was joined on the back line by Asher Kuzemka and Yaghmmour for the full time while Caleb Jones and Carson Friedlein combined for the final spot on the back line. The CNU defense surrendered just nine shots, including two on-frame, to the dangerous Rowan attack. 

The two shots that Hayden Dewey was forced to stop in the game included a point blank chance in the first half that might have swung momentum dramatically in favor of the Profs. Loose in the box and all alone, Ryan Gale drove into close range before blistering a shot toward Dewey and the junior goalkeeper made the pivotal stop in the one-on-one situation. 

After the highlight-reel save, the Captains took control of the match in the second half and outshot the Profs, 11-4, after halftime. CNU narrowly missed on a handful of opportunities including a header from Yaghmmour that rebounded off the post and a one-time connection from Caleb Jones that sailed high from just inside the six. Jason LaViola connected on a sizzling line drive that sailed just right and Matt Liss added one less than a minute later that looked identical from the other side of the field, sailing just left. 

The win for CNU was the first over a top-ten team since October 13, 2021 when they downed No. 5 Johns Hopkins, 2-0, in a neutral site matchup. CNU is unbeaten through eight games for just the fifth time in program history, joining the 2000, 2010, 2011 and 2015 squads -- many of whom were in attendance on Saturday night. 

Christopher Newport will head out on the road for the first time this season for their next two games as they are set to face Denison University on Friday night at 7:00 p.m. before taking on No. 4 Kenyon College on Sunday, September 29 at 11:00 a.m.