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NEWPORT NEWS, Va.- The Captains of Christopher Newport got 25 points from senior Tra Benefield and 20 from junior Mike Cherry and defeated York College (NY) Saturday, 89-83. The victory at the Freeman Center came in the opening round of the Holiday Inn Captains Shootout.

Emory downed Methodist, 97-91, in the first gameof the day to set up a CNU-Emory Championship Sunday at 2:00 p.m.

Methodist will play York in the third-place game Sunday at 4:00 p.m.

Christopher Newport improved to 3-0 with the triumph, Sophomore Evan Thorpe also finished in double digits with 13 points. Senior Luc Atangana came off the bench to score nine points and lead the squad with a game-high 12 rebounds.

CNU out-rebounded York, 43-32, and the Captains made 20 of 26 foul shots (77 percent) en route to the win.

"I was really impressed with our effort," Head Coach John Krikorian said. "We had a lot of people step up, and we withstood their runs. I think we did a great job in the second half containing their big scorers, and that was the difference."

The Captains jumped out to a 10-2 lead to begin the game, only to see York come roaring back. The Cardinals grabbed the lead and went up by ten, 40-30, before CNU reeled off a 16-6 run to head to halftime with the score tied at 46-46.

Christopher Newport and York then exchanged the lead numerous times early in the second half. Sophomore Connor Laframboise knocked down a jumper to tie the game at 56-56 with 14:46 to play, sparking a 19-3 Captains run and a 73-59 lead, CNU would not fall behind again, and the Captains held on for the six-point win.

Thorpe and Benefield sparked the Captains in the second stanza, each scoring a dozen points in the final 20 minutes.

York was led by 30 points from Michael Woods and 20 from Omar St. John. The Cardinals are now 1-2 for the season.

Benefield's 25 points moves him into 10th place on the all-time scoring list, just one point behind Ted Berry for ninth-place.

CNU evened the all-time series with York at 3-3, and the Captains now host Emory Sunday at 2:00 p.m. for the Captains Shootout title.