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NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- After finishing the regular season with a pristine 17-0 record, the top-ranked Christopher Newport field hockey team received a first-round bye and was selected to host the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament, which will include second and third-round games beginning on Saturday at Jennings Family Stadium.

Entering the playoffs as the top overall seed in the tournament and the last remaining undefeated team in the nation, CNU will welcome three first-round winners to town for an action-packed weekend of top-flight competition. On Saturday at 11 a.m., the Captains will kick off the postseason with a second-round match-up against the survivor of Wednesday's tilt between No. 14 Rowan and No. 18 Lynchburg.

Along with CNU's opening foe, the two other teams in the Newport News Regional will be determined during an additional pair of midweek clashes. On Wednesday in the first round of the tournament, No. 5 Salisbury will face Denison, while No. 12 Dickinson will battle St. Mary's (Md.). The victors of those two contests will then meet at Jennings Family Stadium on Saturday at 2 p.m.

Following the second-round action, Saturday's advancing teams will square off on Sunday at 1 p.m. with a spot in the Final Four on the line. The national semifinals will take place on November 21 at Robin L. Sheppard Field in Hartford, Connecticut before the NCAA champion is crowned on the same field on November 23.

Battle-tested against one of the most challenging schedules in the nation, Christopher Newport enters the postseason with seven victories over fellow NCAA Tournament participants. During the regular season, the Captains defeated at-large selection Williams as well as eventual conference champions Denison, Johns Hopkins, Rowan, Salisbury, Stevens, and St. Mary's (Md.).

This year's selection marks CNU's 14th trip to the national playoffs. During the squad's previous appearances, Christopher Newport advanced to the Sweet 16 on seven occasions in addition to two Elite Eight runs and a Final Four trip in 2013.

Last year's team reached the Elite Eight after knocking off St. Mary's (Md.) and York (Pa.) during the first two rounds of the tournament.

Playing in front of their hometown faithful, the Captains will open the playoffs in Newport News for the 11th time in school history. Additionally, the squad has been selected to host at least one game every year since 2021. Making history with its fifth straight hosting assignment, the field hockey program is the first sport at Christopher Newport to host a game in five straight postseason tournaments. Previously, the men's basketball, men's soccer, men's lacrosse, softball, and women's soccer teams all had four consecutive hosting gigs.

Equally impressive on the national stage, Christopher Newport joins Tufts and Babson as the only programs to play at least one home game in every field hockey tournament since 2021. Meanwhile, CNU, Babson, Tufts, Johns Hopkins, Middlebury, Rowan, and Salisbury are the only squads that have advanced to the NCAA Tournament during each of the past five years.

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