ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. -- Heading into a mid-week matchup at North Carolina Wesleyan (6-7-1) on Wednesday afternoon, the Christopher Newport men's soccer team jumped up two spots in the United Soccer Coaches Division III Top 25 and are now ranked No. 19 in the nation. The Captains have a four-game unbeaten streak and are now 9-1-4 overall this season.
Kickoff against the Battling Bishops at Scalf Field is set for 4:00 p.m. in Rocky Mount, North Carolina as the Captains renew a long-standing rivalry against their former conference foes. CNU has won ten in a row against N.C. Wesleyan dating back to the 2010 regular season when the Captains suffered a 3-2 setback on the road. With the win streak, Christopher Newport now owns a 25-18-8 all-time advantage in what has been historically one of the most even head-to-head battles.
Christopher Newport is 12-8-3 all-time in Rocky Mount and the two teams were 16-16-7 against eachother in conference play when the Captains exited the USA South Athletic Conference in 2013.
Live stats will be available online along with a FloCollege video stream hosted by the N.C. Wesleyan Department of Athletics for a fee.
The Captains are back in the top-20 after a one-week hiatus at No. 21. CNU has been ranked as high as No. 5 in the nation this season and has held onto a spot in the top-20 for five of the seven weekly poll releases by the coaches' association.
The Christopher Newport defense, led by three players to earn Defensive Player of the Week recognition this season in
Hayden Dewey,
Yazan Yaghmmour, and
Asher Kuzemka, has been a formidable one to crack this year. The Captains have allowed just n goals for a 0.64 goals-against average in 14 games played. Teams are managing just over four shots on-goal per game against the Captains back line, which also includes sophomores
Josh Monzon,
Declan Karney, and
Carson Friedlein.
On the offensive end, Friedlein has done the most damage with eight points on three goals and two assists.
Drew McWhinney and
Barry Jones, this week's C2C Offensive Player of the Week, rank second on the team in scoring with six points on three goals apiece.
Joe Summerfield also has six points with two goals and two helpers during the 2025 campaign.
N.C. Wesleyan will counter the Captains with a team that has won four in a row with multi-goal scoring performances in each game during a current five-game unbeaten streak. Offensively, Tom Roantree leads the Bishops with 10 points on four goals and two assists, but the balanced offense features four more players with multiple goals scored this year.
Just three games remain in the regular season as Christopher Newport hits the road Wednesday. Following the road trip South, the Captains will return home for the final home game of the year on Wednesday, October 29 versus Mary Washington. The regular season will then close on Saturday, November 1 at Salisbury University.
