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NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Capturing the program's fifth conference crown in the last six seasons, the Christopher Newport women's soccer team hoisted the Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference Championship trophy after earning a hard-fought 4-2 victory in a penalty kick shootout following a 1-1 draw against the second-seeded University of Mary Washington Eagles (12-2-4) on Sunday afternoon. Junior
Bella Aguayo equalized with a dream of a goal late in the second half, setting up the shootout where senior goalkeeper
Amy Sidaway picked up a pivotal save and scored one of her own to help lift CNU to the victory.
Playing in front of a season-high crowd of nearly 550 fans with the conference crown on the line, the Captains and Eagles played overtime to completion on a bright, beautiful Fall afternoon at Captains Field. The two familiar foes were matching up in the conference championship for just the third time ever and the first time since 2022 when the Captains earned a 1-0 win on the same field.
Mary Washington scored in the 20th minute and then held on with the advantage for nearly 55 minutes before the Captains managed to tie things up on a goal in the 75th. From there, neither team was able to find the gamewinner in the final 15 minutes of regulation nor through 20 minutes of overtime play. The conference championship was decided by kicks for just the seventh time in the 35-year history of the league.
In penalty kicks, it was
Amy Sidaway who stole the show for the Captains as one of the nation's elite goalkeepers was thrust into the spotlight. The first shot by the Eagles was just inches beyond the reach of Sidaway as she guessed the right side but could not quite get her gloves on it. The second, however, Sidaway guessed right again and dove to her left and stoned the shot to give the Captains an edge in the shootout. Following up that mastery in the goalmouth, she immediately took the ball to the spot for her own attempt on goal and blistered a make into the left side of the netting for a 2-1 lead.
The Eagles would shoot wide left next and
Avery Spell put the Captains up by two, just one save or one make away from clinching when she tucked it in for the Captains and a 3-1 lead. The Eagles kept it alive with a make, but sophomore
Nora Cook sent the team into a celebratory frenzy with the fourth straight conversion in the shootout to capture a 4-2 win.
Prior to the theatrics, the game was filled with moments that set up the dramatic finish. For Sidaway, a career-high 11 saves defined one of the finest overall performances of her career to keep the Captains in the game against the league's leading offense. One such moment came just minutes into the second half as Mary Washington had a golden opportunity to double the lead when a failed clearance allowed Maria Walsh a chance all alone in the box against Sidaway. From just outside the six, Walsh tried to slide a shot by the senior goalkeeper, but the three-time All-Region star made an otherworldly sprawling save to deny the close-range shot.
The defensive highlight sparked the Christopher Newport offense, which was limited to just one shot on-goal in the first half.
Grace Shifflett made an attempt on frame from deep in the 57th minute and
Julia Joyner added a hard shot that sailed wide left in the 67th minute. Things would change for the Captains, however, in the 75th minute when a tremendous combination led to the game-tying goal.
The play started out of bounds when
Bella DiTommaso threw it in deep in the Mary Washington end; the Eagles attempted to clear the ball but CNU junior
Ellie Diehl directed a header back toward the goal box where
Anaya Lozano was tracking back recovering at the top of the box. The second ball was headed by Lozano right to the feet of Aguayo, left all alone in the middle of the field. After one settling touch, Aguayo dialed in and delivered a dynamite strike into the top pocket of the left side for the score.
The goal was the first of her career after being forced to miss the 2025 campaign with an injury. This year, Aguayo has worked her way back while averaging just over 23 minutes per game before Sunday. In the C2C title game, though, the junior played a career-high 64 minutes and led the CNU offense with a pair of shots on-goal.
With the minutes waning in regulation, the Eagles had two close opportunities turned away as Skye Lawhun headed one wide and Sidaway punched away a shot attempt off a corner kick by Maci Landel. The Captains got a hard rip by Shifflett that whistled just wide right in the 81st minute and the teams would go into extra time knotted at one goal apiece.
A frenetic finish in the second overtime provided even more fireworks for fans as Christopher Newport had a free kick with a minute remaining in the attacking third. DiTommaso served the ball into the box but Mary Washington goalkeeper Emily Orn snared it out of the air. On a counter attack, the Eagles had a three-on-two situation that resulted in Emily Box getting a solid look inside the box with 12 seconds remaining; tracking back at full speed, CNU's freshman defender
Catie Borsuk managed to lunge at the last moment to get between the shot and the goal and knock it away, securing the draw in the final moments.
For her overall performance in the 2026 edition of the postseason event,
Amy Sidaway was named the Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference Tournament MVP. Joining her on the All-Tournament Team was
Bella Aguayo,
Bella DiTommaso, and
Lexi Hazelgrove.
With the 1-1 draw and 4-2 shootout victory, the Captains are now 11-2-4 this season and will compete in the 2026 NCAA Division III Women's Soccer Championship first round next weekend with the automatic qualifying berth that comes with the C2C Championship. CNU will be making the tenth straight postseason appearance and 18th all-time NCAA Tournament showing. A live selection show will be available at NCAA.com at 11:30 a.m. on Monday, November 9 where the Captains will learn the location and opponent of their first round game.
