ABILENE, Texas -- After making it through the first six games of the season at home unscathed, the 20th-ranked Christopher Newport men's soccer team heads out on the road for the first time in 2025 this weekend with a pair of games in Texas. First, the Captains will take on No. 4 Trinity (Texas) on a neutral field at 7:30 p.m. on Friday night before facing the host Cowboys from Hardin-Simmons University on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.

Live stats and a live video webcast will be available online for fans unable to make the trek to Texas this weekend. Links to both can be found on the men's soccer schedule at CNUsports.com. Fans are reminded that game times listed are local with an 8:30 p.m. kickoff on the East Coast. 

The Captains will encounter the top-five opponent on Friday night for the sixth-time in the all-time series as CNU is 1-3-1 all-time against Trinity. All five of the previous games came on Trinity's home field and the last matchup between the two teams came in 2019 when CNU earned a 1-1 double overtime draw. The Saturday night bout against Hardin-Simmons will be just the second matchup all-time after facing the Cowboys in the same trip to Texas in 2019 where CNU dropped a 2-1 double overtime decision. 

CNU is 4-0-2 this season after winning four straight games heading into the weekend. The Captains captured a 1-0 win against Rutgers-Camden and added a 3-1 win over previously undefeated Hampden-Sydney College last weekend to extend the unbeaten streak to six games to start the year. The four-game winning streak is the third most wins in a row by the Captains since head coach Justin Chezem took over in 2019. 

The Captains defense has allowed just four goals so far this season while being led by a youthful back line that includes three starting sophomores. Declan Karney, Carson Friedlein, and Josh Monzon have started all six games on defense while junior Yazan Yaghmmour is the other regular playing in front of senior goalkeeper Hayden Dewey. 

The defenders have been at the forefront of the offensive production as well with Yaghmmour (4 pts) and Friedlein (3 pts) at the top of the scoring chart so far. On the other end of the field, junior Drew McWhinney and sophomore Ryan Buckon have led the group of forwards with a goal apiece while veterans Manzi Siibo, Asher Kuzemka, Barry Jones, and Caleb Jones have all scored once as well. 

CNU will be taking on a Trinity University team that is 5-0-0 to start the year. The Tigers already have a marquee win after capturing a season-opening 2-1 victory against nationally-ranked Claremont. So far, Trinity has surrendered just one goal and is outscoring their opponents by a count of 15-1. The perennial power suffered just one loss in 2024, coming in the NCAA Tournament Round of 16 to 11th-ranked Babson College as they punctuated a 19-1-3 overall record. 

This season, The Tigers are led by senior Adam Knutson and junior Samuel Theiss with 10 points apiece. Knutson has four goals and a pair of assists while Theiss leads Trinity with five goals already this season. Defensively, junior Jayden Schell has stepped into the starting role at goalkeeper and boasts a 0.23 goals-against average. Like the Captains, Trinity features a young, but sturdy back line with three starting sophomores in Jeremy Siau, Alex Baltov, and Daniel Urquidi. 

On Saturday, CNU will take on a Hardin-Simmons squad with a 3-3-0 overall record. The Cowboys captured a 4-2 win against Centenary on Thursday, September 11, and have not been in action since -- the hosts will take on Trinity first, a 7:30 p.m. on Thursday night. Hardin-Simmons won two of their first three before dropping back-to-back games against St. Thomas and Concordia (Texas). 

Despite the up-and-down slate, the Cowboys are averaging 2.50 goals per game while peppering opponents with over 15 shots per contest. James Webb, with 11 points on five goals and an assist, leads the offense while Benny Lube has added eight points on three goals and two helpers so far. 

Following the trip back to Virginia, Christopher Newport will stay on the road to take on Marymount University on Saturday, September 27. It will be the third game of a six-game set away from Captains Field before CNU returns home to take on Regent University on Saturday, October 11.