NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – Christopher Newport jumped out to a 6-0 halftime lead and never looked back in claiming a 12-7 victory over 20th-ranked Washington and Lee in men's lacrosse action on Wednesday evening at the Captains Turf Field.

First-year attackman Dylan Rice broke a scoreless tie late in the first period when he scored unassisted at the 4:08 mark.  CNU (1-0) then assumed control of the game in the second period, scoring five goals in the frame for a 6-0 lead entering the break.  Rice scored a second unassisted goal at the 12:21 mark and then provided a 3-0 lead with a goal off an assist from senior midfielder Shane McKenna at the 6:21 mark.  Sophomore midfielder Pat Matsko scored at 3:08 and senior midfielder Drew Magnusson found the back of the net with 1:35 left for the six-goal lead at the break.

W&L (0-2) couldn't find the net until the second half for the second straight contest, but broke through with 11:48 left in the third period on an unassisted goal by junior attackman A.J. Witherell (Wilmington, Del. / Salesianum).  Rice made it 7-1 when he scored his fourth goal of the game just 1:25 later, but a pair of W&L goals pulled the Generals to within 7-3 at the 6:20 mark.  Witherell fed first-year midfielder Ben Mulholland (Sewickley, Pa. / Sewickley Academy) for a goal at 7:35 and then he found sophomore midfielder Garrett Cannon (Wilmington, Del. / Salesianum), who beat CNU sophomore goalkeeper Scott McAneney at 6:20.

The Captains seized momentum back, however, closing the period with three of the game's next four goals for a 10-4 lead entering the fourth quarter.  First-year attackman Jackson Deal scored twice and Rice added a fifth score for CNU.  Mulholland scored his second goal of the game for the Generals with 2:52 left in the period.

After CNU scored at the 12:52 mark for an 11-4 lead, the Generals had one last run, scoring three straight tallies to make it an 11-7 game with 1:55 left to play.  First-year attackman Taylor Witherell (Wilmington, Del. / Salesianum) notched a man-up goal off an assist from sophomore midfielder Hudson Hamill (Darien, Conn. / Darien) at the 11:18 mark, and Hamill scored unassisted at 3:18.  Witherell then found senior attackman Sam Dardani (Waccabuc, N.Y. / Westminster) for a goal at the 1:55 mark, but the Blue & White could get no closer and the Captains added a goal by McKenna with 49 seconds left for the final margin.

For the game, CNU held advantages of 42-24 in shots, 31-17 in ground balls and 17-5 on faceoffs.  W&L was led by A.J. Witherell's one goal and three assists.  Mulholland notched two goals and Hamill had one goal and one assist.  First-year Will Atkins (Washington, D.C. / St. Albans) played all 60 minutes in goal and recorded 12 saves.  On defense, junior Paul Callahan (San Rafael, Calif. / Marin Catholic) recorded four ground balls and three caused turnovers.

Rice led the Captains with five goals, while Magnusson had two goals and one assist.  Deal added a pair of goals as well.  McAneney played the duration in goal and made nine saves.

Washington and Lee returns to action on Sunday when it hosts fourth-ranked Denison for a 1:00 pm contest.

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