NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Briana Sutton unloaded a career-high 19 kills, while fellow freshman Hannah Miller had nine blasts and four blocks to lead the Christopher Newport volleyball team to the Capital Athletic Conference championship match after defeating Marymount, 3-1 (25-15, 22-25, 25-18, 25-13), during the semifinals on Thursday evening at the Freeman Center.

Sutton was on-point throughout the contest, hitting at a .429 clip during the four-set thriller. Chastity Lacy also chimed in with eight kills and four blocks, while Rachel Conway dished out 45 assists and tallied nine digs as well.

With the victory, CNU improves to 23-12 on the season and advances to Saturday's CAC Championship match against second-seeded Salisbury. The title bout will take place at the Freeman Center beginning at 3 p.m.

Looking for their first CAC Tournament victory, the Captains jumped all over Marymount in the first set. Lacy came through with two quick blocks, while Krista Hughes had a pair of kills and a rejection on the way to an intimidating 14-5 advantage. Later, Harper Smith stung the Saints with a bullet and an ace to push the CNU lead to 19-12 entering an MU timeout.

Following the stoppage, Sutton immediately pumped a kill to keep CNU's run going before tacking on another one to secure set-point at 24-15. Although the Saints staved off the Captains for one rally, Sutton came through once again and fired a tracer that capped off the first frame, 25-15.

After landing the first blow in the contest, Christopher Newport stumbled a bit in the second stanza. Although Conway clocked an ace and Sutton added two more kills, the hosts found themselves trailing, 14-11. Later, Lacy slung an ace and Jessie Kolden ripped back-to-back bullets to even the score at 20, but the late surge fell short. Refusing to fall behind, Marymount won the next three rallies and later sealed the 25-22 victory following an ace by Morgan McAlpin.

With the match even at one set apiece, the Captains regrouped. Once again, CNU found its stride from the service line as Brooke Moore punched a pair of aces, while Abby McIntyre also slung a winner on the way to a 16-9 lead. Still rolling, Christopher Newport extended its advantage to 22-13 following back-to-back rockets by Lacy and Miller.

Three points away from the victory, Smith fired a kill before Miller stepped up at the end. Following a minor Marymount run, Miller halted the surge as the freshman collected a kill and block on the final two rallies to slam the door on the third set, 25-18.

Closing in on a CAC Championship berth, Christopher Newport only got stronger as the match moved on. As usual, Sutton was at the forefront of the early surge as the first-year phenom jolted three darts, while Lacy added a block and blast to grab a 10-4 lead entering a Marymount timeout. Once again, the stoppage did nothing as Smith stepped up with a devastating solo block before launching another ace to grab a nine-point advantage at 17-8.

With more than enough wiggle room, the Captains eased into the victory. Moore added her third ace of the match, while Lacy came through with two late kills to earn set-point. Fittingly, after disrupting the Marymount attack all night long, Smith and Miller teamed up on one last rejection to seal the four-set victory with a 25-13 win in the final frame.

Along with four blocks from Miller and Lacy, Conway, Hughes, and Smith all participated in a pair of stops as well. Along the back row, Rachel Close led the team with 13 digs, and Moore and Kolden each came through with 10 apiece. The unit was also strong on serve-receive, converting 62 of their 64 reception attempts, including a pristine 15-for-15 effort by Close.

---CNU---