Field hockey earns sixth straight NCAA bid after back-to-back weekend victories

Adam Baker/The Captain's Log

Coming into Friday night’s match-up with Houghton, Christopher Newport University’s field hockey team had lost back-to-back games for the first time all season, both of which were 1 point, overtime heart-breakers.

The Houghton Highlanders, who made the 530-mile journey from Houghton, N.Y. to Newport News, were in a similar situation, having lost two straight games by one point a piece.

On what turned out to be a cold, blustery night at Captains Field, the Highlanders came out flat, and CNU rolled to a 7-0 victory.

The Captains got the scoring started with 14:05 remaining in the first half, as sophomore attacker Marlene Lichty beat Houghton goalkeeper Hillery Duman with a howitzer from about 25-feet out. It was the beginning of a career night for the sophomore from Chesapeake as she would eventually tack on two more goals, giving her the first hat-trick of her collegiate career.

Junior All-Region midfielder Caitlin Cahill would extend the Captains advantage just six minutes later. Cahill carried the ball deep into Highlanders territory, but a Houghton defender snatched it off her stick and took off in the other direction. Cahill quickly composed herself and stole it back. Before the Houghton defense knew what hit them, Cahill had decked out several defenders and planted the ball in the back of the net, giving the Captains a 2-0 lead.

Several minutes later, the Highlanders took a time out in an attempt to stall the Captains’ momentum.

“We’re getting some good looks, we just need to capitalize,” shouted Coach Carrie Moura to her team. “Just keep playing with intensity!”

The Captains went into the locker room leading 2-0, but the score was not indicative of how dominant Moura’s team had been in the first half. They out-shot the visitors 10-3 in the first 35 minutes, and the majority of the action took place on Houghton’s side of the field.

In the second half, CNU blew the game wide open.

“During half-time our coaches told us to stay composed and poised,” said Lichty.  “They wanted us to focus on our small passing game and possessing the ball. We implemented their advice, which is why [Houghton] didn’t get the opportunity to score much in the second half.”

Junior midfielder Breanne Lowe got the ball rolling with a goal on a penalty stroke shortly after the half-time break.

After that, the flood gates were open. Over the next 14 minutes, the Captains dominated time of possession and scored four consecutive goals.

It started with Lichty, who notched back-to-back goals in a five minute span to complete the hat trick. Then senior attacker Paige Childers got in on the action, scoring her second goal of the season. Sophomore attack Megan Sullivan rounded out the scoring for the Captains with a little under eight minutes remaining.

All seven of the Captains’ goals were unassisted.

“We used our passing to help eliminate defenders, we didn’t just pass to pass,” Birch proclaimed. “The girls worked hard to get scoring opportunities, and in the second half they were able to capitalize on them.”

Sophomore Julie Collins and junior Jaime Dowling split time in net, each recording one save. It was the Captains’ seventh shut-out of the season.

With the hat trick, Lichty is now second on the team with six goals. Cahill tops the team with 15.

“It means a lot to our coaches and players [to get a win],” said Lichty.  “It shows that after two difficult loses we can regroup and come back having learned something from it.”

Before the contest got underway, long-time team mom Debbie Cale was recognized for her numerous contributions to the field hockey program. “Momma” Cale, as she was often referred to, passed away on October 26 after an extended battle with ovarian cancer.

“Her warm smile and presence will continue to be felt each day,” proclaimed the PA announcer.  “She will not be forgotten.”

On Saturday, the Captains rolled to a 10-2 victory over Transylvania. With the victory, the Captains’ record now sits at 12-5. After the weekend, the team learned that they had been chosen to play in the NCAA tournament, and play their first game Wednesday, November 9 against No. 12 ranked Ursinus College. Ursinus has a 16-3 record on the year and has defeated CNU in their only two meetings, the last coming in 2008.

Posted by Mike Schoeffel on Nov 9 2011. Filed under Field Hockey, Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.