NEWPORT NEWS, VA (WTKR)- Christopher Newport's last loss in women's soccer came on November 17, 2019, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Since then, the Captains have been a buzz-saw that opponents cannot figure out how to turn off.
2022 has seen CNU pick up right where it left off last season, when the squad went 22-0-1 on its way to a national championship. The Captains are 14-0-1 with one regular season match remaining before the Coast-to-Coast Conference Tournament next week, meaning their current unbeaten streak stands at 38 matches.
"This year has definitely been a challenge to continue our success," said head coach Jamie Gunderson. "I will say our schedule is a little bit tougher this year too as well, so for the team to continue that success and the will to win this year has just been really special."
"This team has so much grit and we really want to win and we really want to win for each other and I think that makes a little bit of a difference," fifth-year midfielder Abby Harrigan added. "We all have the passion for it and we're going to make it happen no matter what."
While back-to-back national championships would be an unprecedented accomplishment for the program, that's not what's been driving the Captains. The players say they have not talked about repeating as champs at length, choosing instead to focus on the moment.
"The team hasn't looked back, they don't look ahead to the next opponent or the bigger picture," Gunderson noted. "It's taking care of what's in front of us in that moment and they've done a phenomenal job."
"Last season was last season and although we're all proud of what that team did, this is a new team," pointed out Harrigan. "Every year it's a new team. We have the same goal, but a different way of getting their for sure."
Christopher Newport wraps up its regular season on Saturday at Salisbury before returning home to host the conference tournament, which begins on Wednesday.
