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VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. -- The second-ranked Christopher Newport field hockey team will continue its road swing on Wednesday at 6 p.m. when the Captains head to Batten University for a showdown with the Marlins at Birdsong Field.

Entering the midweek clash, CNU sits at 7-1 on the season, including 5-1 on the road. Meanwhile, Batten is 5-4 overall and 2-2 at home.

For those fans unable to attend the game, live stats will be available at BattenAthletics.com. The hosts will also provide a broadcast of the action for paid subscribers of Flosports. Direct links can be found at the top of this release and on the schedule page.

In the latest NFHCA poll, Christopher Newport picked up six first-place votes while placing second overall in the rankings. Tufts moved into the top spot with a pristine 7-0 record, while Middlebury, Salisbury, and Williams rounded out the top-five.

The Captains split a pair of games during a trip to Massachusetts last week after knocking off Vassar, 3-0, on Friday before dropping a 1-0 overtime decision to No. 6 Middlebury on Sunday. Headlining the road trip, Avery Mast matched her career-high with four points during the win over the Brewers, while Ella Fallen established a new personal standard with 12 saves in the top-10 tilt against the Panthers.

Along with Fallen's work against Middlebury, Kendall Gibson added her eighth career defensive save during Sunday's action. That moved her to 10th on the program's all-time charts, passing CNU Hall of Famer Kim Tomlin and longtime legends Breanne Lowe and Shelby Judkins.

Aided in large part to the defensive efforts of Fallen and Gibson, Christopher Newport extended its shutout streak to 366 consecutive minutes before Middlebury scored on a penalty stroke in overtime. That marked the third-longest run in school history, trailing only a 613-minute streak in 2007 and a 417-minute stretch last fall.

Overall this season, CNU ranks second in the nation in scoring defense with a 0.37 goals-against-average. On an individual level, Fallen is third on the NCAA charts with a remarkable .923 save percentage. The senior has secured 24 total stops while allowing just a pair of goals.

On the other side of the field, the Captains are 10th nationally in goals-per-game with a 3.88 average. Lindsey Loar leads the squad with 20 points, including nine goals. Caroline Hughlett also boasts a team-high five assists to go along with six strikes, while Mast, Courtney Hughlett, and Emma Weber have four helpers apiece as well.

Batten compiled a three-game winning streak before dropping a hard-fought 3-2 decision in double-overtime to McDaniel on Saturday. Incredibly, of the squad's four losses, three have come in overtime. In addition to the team's recent stumble, the Marlins also dropped a double-overtime decision to Washington (Md.) after opening the year with a 1-0 loss to St. Mary's (Md.) in a 64-minute marathon at Birdsong Field.

So far this season, Batten sits 15th in the country in save percentage with a stellar .831 mark. Berkley Miller has led the team between the pipes with 58 saves and a 1.28 goals-against-average. Additionally, Regan Wells has three defensive saves, while Landry Meyer leads on the offensive side with 13 points, including five goals.

In 18 previous meetings between the two programs, Christopher Newport holds a 15-3 edge in the series. Last year, the Captains recorded a 7-0 win in Newport News. Ellie Nuckols had two goals in that triumph, while Courtney Hughlett, Riley Iasiello, and Kelly Via pitched in with three points apiece.

Following Wednesday's tilt, CNU will have a lengthy layoff before returning to action with a showdown at Roger Williams on October 11 at 1 p.m.

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