NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Trailing by two at the end of the first half, the third-ranked Christopher Newport men's lacrosse team quickly flipped the script after the break and capitalized on another historic performance by Kevin Miller to run away with a 13-10 victory over No. 12 Washington and Lee during the ninth annual Virginia Lacrosse the Nations Cup on a gorgeous Wednesday evening at Jennings Family Stadium.

Headlining the comeback, Miller finished the contest with seven points, including five in the second half. He assisted on three straight goals at the beginning of the third quarter before adding two more points in the final frame to guide CNU to the come-from-behind victory.

Among his seven points, Miller had six assists, which equaled the fourth-highest total in program history. In his career, the junior standout has now notched at least six helpers on seven occasions. Putting that into perspective, every other player in CNU history has combined for eight such games.

Along with Miller, Jamie Smith had five points, including four goals, while Jackson Platner had a pair of strikes. Jude MacLean also landed a momentum-turning dagger at the start of the fourth quarter, which gave the Captains a lead they would never relinquish.

On the other end of the field, Christopher Newport baited Washington and Lee into 19 turnovers. Brett Kelley had three takeaways and set a new career-high with six ground balls. Colin DeGrassi, Mark Davison, Rory Keverline, and Will Cramp also had two strips apiece, while Mason Bellinger added 10 saves between the pipes.

Equally effective against the Generals, Grant Giunchi set new career-highs with 15 faceoff wins and nine ground balls. He was especially impressive in the second half while helping CNU win eight of the 11 faceoffs over the final 30 minutes.

With the victory, Christopher Newport improved to 4-0 on the season, while the setback dropped Washington and Lee to 0-2. It also marked the Captains' sixth straight win in the Virginia LtN Cup, which is an annual battle between the two programs that raises awareness and funds for Lacrosse the Nations. 

Trailing 8-6 at the start of the third quarter, CNU dug in on both sides of the ball. On the offensive end, Miller put on a show. Less than three minutes into the second half, he faked a flip to Jackson Shaw, spun into the right alley, and connected with Ryan Miller, who sank a man-up missile from long range to cut the deficit down to one.

Moments later, Kevin Miller found John Santoro for the equalizer before Giunchi won the ensuing faceoff. Back in control, Miller dropped a dime over a pair of defenders. On the inside, Smith caught the pass, fought through two more Generals, and dunked on the doorstep to give the hosts a 9-8 edge.

Meanwhile, on the defensive end, DeGrassi opened up a yard sale after punching the stick out of an attacker's grasp. Then, Kelley stripped a midfielder after a scramble near the center stripe, while Caden Cunningham knocked the ball away from a cutter along the crease.

Although Washington and Lee eventually evened the score at nine at the end of the third quarter, Christopher Newport had momentum on its side in the final frame.

Continuing the defensive domination, Daniel Siaton snatched an errant pass and jump-started a successful clear. Moments later, Armer Harrison peppered a pair of attackers with a series of stick-checks in the left alley. Following the abuse, DeGrassi helped force a turnover before Harrison pounced on the loose ball along the crease.

Although Washington and Lee kept applying pressure, the Captains never relented. Jed Pellicano stayed on the hip of a midfielder and forced an off-target pass from the left wing before Keverline came through with a leaping interception to stymie another rally.

Following Keverline's takeaway, the attack went back to work. On the very next possession, MacLean found himself matched up with a short-stick on the right side. Taking advantage of the situation, he bullied his man before getting to his right hand and sinking a stinger into the bottom right corner of the cage for a 10-9 lead.

After Bellinger stoned Washington and Lee's next attempt, the offense put the game on ice. Randolph Campbell burned a defender behind the cage, sidestepped a long pole, and elevated along the crease before firing a missile inside the right post. Shortly thereafter, he came back and set a screen for Kevin Miller, who rolled around the bottleneck on the way to his first goal of the game.

Following W&L's final goal, the Miller brothers helped put an end to the action. Kicking off a late rally, Ryan Miller de-sticked a defender and grabbed the ground ball to prevent a successful clear. Following a timeout, he regained possession in the right corner before connecting with his older brother, who found Smith for a layup along the left side of the cage that wrapped up the 13-10 win.

Overall, Christopher Newport held a 46-29 advantage in shots and a 36-27 lead in ground balls. The Captains also won 15 of the game's 27 faceoffs.

In the first half, Washington and Lee jumped out to a 2-0 lead before CNU battled back. At the forefront of the early action, Kevin Miller opened his day with back-to-back assists on strikes by Platner and Miller. Then, after Kelley wrenched a stick out of the hands of a General on the defensive end, Smith gave the hosts their first lead with a rocket from the right alley.

Trailing by one, the visitors retaliated in the second period. Although Ethan Slusher had an early goal for the Captains, Washington and Lee scored four times in the first nine minutes to steal a 6-4 edge.

Looking for a response, AJ Rosacker drove an attacker into traffic before Davison forced an errant pass. Keverline also chipped in with a slick trail-check to kill another W&L surge, while Cramp buried a General into the turf along the crease for his first takeaway of the contest.

Meanwhile, on the opposite side, Platner came back with his second goal after planting a tracer under the crossbar, while Ryan Traynor slipped behind the defense, caught a flip from Smith, and scored from the left wing. Unfortunately, Washington and Lee also struck twice in the waning moments of the first half to notch an 8-6 lead entering the break.

Despite the deficit, CNU never backed down. Securing a second wind after the break, the Captains outscored the opposition, 7-2, in the second half to secure the come-from-behind victory.

Christopher Newport will return to action on Saturday when the squad hosts No. 17 Stevenson at 6 p.m.

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