BRISTOL, R.I. -- Riley Iasiello drove home a pair of goals, while the defense pitched its seventh shutout of the season as the third-ranked Christopher Newport field hockey team silenced Roger Williams, 5-0, on Sunday afternoon at Bayside Field.
Starring on the offensive side, Iasiello registered her third career multi-goal effort after landing a pair of second-half blows. Making her performance even more special, she accomplished the feat on the very same field that her younger brother, Tommy, has called home as a member of the Roger Williams men's lacrosse team.
Along with Iasiello's eruption,
Caroline Hughlett opened the scoring with her 30th career goal, becoming just the 13th Captain to reach that benchmark. That strike was also her 11th career game-winning tally, which moved her into a tie with fellow first-team All-American Rachael Allshouse for the third-most in school history.
Rounding out the goal-scorers,
Avery Mast converted a penalty stroke, while
Calli Martin collected her second strike of the year. Those efforts helped headline a lethal four-minute stretch in the third quarter, which saw the Captains score three times while flipping a tight 1-0 edge into a commanding 4-0 advantage.
In addition to the offensive stars,
Ella Fallen came away with three saves, while Mast and
Gigi Stephan both blocked shots to complete the shutout.
With the victory, Christopher Newport improved to 9-1 on the season while conquering another state. With the addition of Rhode Island, the Captains have now won at least one game in 15 different states since the program was founded in 2000. Meanwhile, this year's senior class is the most well-traveled collection of standouts in school history, winning contests in nine states as well as Washington, D.C.
On the other side, Sunday's setback dropped Roger Williams to 8-5.
Early on, the Captains pieced together another defensive clinic while suffocating the Hawks from sideline to sideline.
Kelly Via stole the show in the early going as the junior beat a pair of attackers to a spinner in the left corner before ripping the ball off the stick of another player who wiggled free in the center of the turf. Then, she deflected a pass near midfield, which Stephan eventually corralled in the fifth minute.
Continuing the domination, Stephan picked the pockets of an attacker with a slick strip inside the arc before punching the ball to
Ellie Nuckols, who ended the threat. Shortly thereafter, the visitors kept the ball pinned on their offensive end of the field as
Emma Weber intercepted a clear attempt near the right sideline before
Ellen Gallagher did the same along the opposite boundary.
Later in the stanza, a long outlet pass by the Hawks sprung a breakaway with two minutes left on the clock. However, Via turned on the jets and made up 10 yards of ground to catch up to the lead streaker just inside the circle. Eventually, her pressure prevented a centering pass from connecting with another attacker, who was crashing down on the left side of the zone.
Then, in the final minute, Fallen made a kick save on a turnaround attempt near the left post before polishing off the period with a diving stop on a corner just seconds later.
Following her work at the end of the opening period, Fallen continued to shine in the second frame. On an early surge by the visitors, two attackers were tracking a long hit into the circle, but the senior scurried out of the cage and punted away the roller before any damage could be done. Then, moments later, she swallowed another rip from the right side before Mast collected the trash and ended the surge.
Meanwhile, CNU's offense began to find some space. Mast went to her backhand and blasted a reverse that just spun past the right pipe. Later, the junior stripped a midfielder and connected with Iasiello, who split two defenders before finding
Lindsey Loar sprinting behind the defense.
One-on-one with the goalie, Loar pulled to her left to clear the keeper, but she ran out of room as her ensuing shot clanked off the left post.
Refusing to back down, Christopher Newport kept up the attack. Finally, in the 24th minute, Mast knocked down an aerial and fed the ball to Loar, who blistered a missile through a Hawk at the top of the arc. Perfectly positioned in the center of the circle, Hughlett deflected the rocket around a second defender as the ball spun into the back of the cage for the game's first goal.
Although the hosts tried to respond at the tail end of the first half, Stephan blocked a shot before swiping a dangerous pass that bounced off the stick of an attacker to keep the 1-0 lead entering halftime.
After the break, CNU's attack went back to work in the third quarter. In the 33rd minute, Mast unloaded a laser that handcuffed a defender, who was stationed between the pipes. The ball eventually caught the body of the Hawk and led to a penalty stroke. Taking advantage of her own efforts, Mast stepped to the dot and fired a one-timer that sailed past the outstretched reach of the keeper into the top left corner of the cage.
Less than a minute later, the Captains came back for more. Off the restart,
Courtney Hughlett picked off an aerial by the Hawks before her sister launched a rainbow of her own up the right sideline, which landed on Weber's stick.
Working quickly, Weber sent the ball to Iasiello who slapped it into the circle. Although a defender cut off the initial attempt, Iasiello grabbed possession again after stealing the clear. With another look, she took advantage as the senior avoided a closeout defender and pasted a shot inside the left post for her first goal of the contest.
Meanwhile, on the back end, the Captains kept a tight lid on Roger Williams. On a run down the right sideline,
Kendall Gibson got into the body of an attacker and sent her tumbling to the turf to slow down a deep threat. Then, Mast blocked a feed at the top of the zone, while Martin won a one-on-one duel along the right side of the arc to wall off a secondary surge just seconds later.
Following the defensive stand, Christopher Newport tossed one more goal on the board before the period was over. Off a corner attempt,
Courtney Hughlett rifled a shot that bounced off the goalie's pads and went flying out to Martin. After playing the ball down to the turf, the freshman planted a second-chance seed between the wickets of the keeper for her second tally of the year.
Staring at a 4-0 deficit, Roger Williams tried to rally in the fourth quarter, but Christopher Newport never let the hosts find a rhythm.
Ella Elliott closed down an early run up the left sideline before
Hailey Ward ripped possession away from a midfielder near the center stripe. Then, Mast outran three Hawks to grab possession of a lengthy roller in the left corner before
Kearney Cunningham stole a pair of passes along the right boundary.
Later, Roger Williams had a three-on-one developing, but Elliott chipped the ball away from the lead attacker to slow down the surge, which allowed the rest of the defense to catch up and join the resistance.
Then, in the 58th minute,
Ellen Gallagher dipped low for a textbook tackle that sent her adversary crashing to the ground. With possession, the freshman moved to midfield before sending a gorgeous feed to
Willow Yost, who leaked behind the defense.
Collecting the pass in the right corner, Yost quickly threaded the ball between two defenders. On the other end, Iasiello hauled it in and cranked a shot inside the post for her second goal of the contest.
Fittingly, after her offensive heroics, Iasiello helped cap off the contest with solid work on the other end of the field. Roger Williams picked up a corner in the 59th minute, but Iasiello served as the flyer and charged out to the top of the circle. Her instant pressure caused the shooter to swing and miss, which helped complete the shutout.
Overall, Christopher Newport held a 27-6 advantage in shots and an 8-4 edge in corners.
The Captains will return to action on October 17 with a 1 p.m. showdown at No. 6 Salisbury.
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