VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. -- Taking on their third nationally-ranked opponent of the season and their second on the road, the fifth-ranked Christopher Newport men's soccer team came out on the wrong end of a 2-0 decision at No. 20 Virginia Wesleyan University (7-1-1) on a brisk, fall night in Virginia Beach. The Captains are now 7-1-2 on the season after the Marlins snapped a six-game winning streak for CNU against the cross-water rivals.
The Captains logged the longest winning streak since 2017 with seven straight victories coming into the matchup on Wednesday night. That run included a 3-2 win at No. 4 Trinity (Texas) that propelled CNU back into the top-five nationally for the first time since 2015. This season, Christopher Newport also earned a 1-1 draw against No. 8 Dickinson.
On Wednesday night, the host Marlins scored twice in the first half and held on as the Captains pressured the defense to get on the board. CNU came out of the second half break with a fervent pace and controlled the action going forward in the first 15 minutes.
Joe Summerfield and
Manzi Siibo made multiple plays in the middle of the pitch to keep offensive plays alive for the Captains despite outnumbered pressure by the Virginia Wesleyan defense.
In the 52nd minute, the Captains earned a corner kick that
Josh Monzon placed perfectly into the center of the box, but a well struck header pinballed between the group of bodies and away from the goal. Minutes later,
Yazan Yaghmmour got loose down the left side and had Summerfield and
Drew McWhinney to his right streaking toward the goal. With defenders forced to watch the passing lanes, Yaghmmour was able to unleash a blistering shot from outside the box, but the attempt was snared by the Virginia Wesleyan keeper, Ben Haynes.
Siibo had a couple of attempts sail wide and Yaghmmour pressured Haynes once more in the second half, but the Captains were held empty on the offensive end. Virginia Wesleyan earned the win with goals from JaMarhe Wills in the 17th minute and Gio Zizza in the 38th.
Hayden Dewey made three saves in goal for the Captains, including a sensational stop from point blank range early in the second half. Wills found a fortuitous bounce in the box and was just yards away when he slammed a shot right into the chest and waiting hands of Dewey.
The Captains will look to bounce back on Saturday, October 4 when they travel to face Mary Washington (6-5-0) at 1:00 p.m.
