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NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- After both teams struggled through a slow start from the field, the Christopher Newport women's basketball team pulled away from their former conference rivals, N.C. Wesleyan (2-2), in the 2014-15 home opener to win, 78-63. Four players were in double figures, leading the Captains (3-2) to their eighth straight home-opening victory.

Senior Camry Green set a new personal best with her fifth straight double-double, pouring in 12 points and grabbing 12 rebounds despite playing a season-low 19 minutes. The 6-2 forward leads the nation in double-doubles and runs her season-opening streak to five. It is the longest such roll since 2008, when Colandra Rollins pieced together six straight double-doubles in late February. 

The game was sluggish to start, with both teams missing shots and turning the ball over through the first five minutes. With her second bucket of the half, Green knotted the score up at eight, six minutes into the frame. The back-and-forth first half teetered back in favor of the Bishops at the 8:16 mark, when Shekinah Huggins dropped in a jumper off an assist from Alexis Fitzgerald. The Captains would close out the half on a 13-7 run, though, to take a 30-24 lead into the break. 

With Camry Green sidelined to early foul trouble, Kendra Stone was a catalyst during the run, grabbing eight first-half rebounds. She hauled in five defensive and three offensive boards, chipping in four first-half points. Rookie Sam Porter also stepped up on the offensive end, leading the Captains first-half scoring with eight points on 4-of-8 shooting. 

North Carolina Wesleyan hung around for the first five minutes of the second half, closing to within four points three times, including at the 16:45 mark when Jordan Cager knocked down a pair of free-throws. Green, though, dominated the next stretch on the glass and put CNU back in the driver's seat. After finishing the first half with five rebounds, Green grabbed six in the next 6:30 of game action to put the Captains on her back. By the end of the run, CNU had built a 19-point lead, dominating the paint for a 54-35 advantage with under 11 minutes to play. 

The game in hand, head coach Bill Broderick turned to his talented freshmen class for the final ten minutes. At times, all five players on the floor were first-year players, and in total, nine players registered double-digit minutes played in Tuesday night's contest. That included five rookies, three of which scored in double figures. 

Porter led all Captains, dropping in 15 points on 6-11 shooting, while grabbing six boards and four steals. Makeda Wright chipped in 12, as did Green, while Makenzie Fancher added a season-high 11 points. Fancher also saw the court well playing on the home floor for the first time in her career, delivering a game-high six assists. All 14 Captains in the book played in the contest, and every one of them grabbed at least one rebound. Savannah Melvin came off the bench late and grabbed four rebounds in five minutes of action. 

As a team, the Captains shot 40% (28-70), including a 45.7% (16-35) second-half. The CNU defense held N.C. Wesleyan to just 31.5% shooting on 23-73 attempts, including an impressive first-half effort that saw the Bishops shoot just 25.6% (10-39).  

CNU outrebounded N.C. Wesleyan, 61-50, and outscored the Bishops in the paint, 50-28. The depth was apparent, as well, as CNU scored 47 points off the bench, including three double-figure scoring efforts from Wright, Porter and Fancher. 

The Bishops got double figure scoring from three players, including a pair just shy of double-doubles. Kenyata Harris led N.C. Wesleyan with 13 points and eight rebounds, while KeChae Parker and Derreon Cole added ten points apiece. Parker also grabbed a team-high nine rebounds. 

The Captains will now take a few days off for the Thanksgiving holiday before getting back to work on Sunday, November 30 as they host the Lynchburg Hornets at 4:00 pm.