Box Score
NEWPORT NEWS, Va.- The Christopher Newport men's basketball squad dug a deep hole in the second half Wednesday night, falling behind at home to St. Mary's College of Maryland by 23 points, 46-23. A frenetic comback over the final fourteen minutes fell short, as the Seahawks escaped the Freeman Center with a 69-64 victory.

Playing on Senior Night, the final home regular season game for CNU, team Captain Tra Benefield led the amazing charge by scoring 27 points and pulling down 13 rebounds. Benefield's second-half effort, which included 22 points and eight rebounds, helped cut into the St. Mary's lead. Benefield's three-pointer with 1:37 to go, his fourth triple of the night, cut the lead to two, 63-61, but was as close as the Captains would get.

The Seahawks then answered with a layup and made free throws in the final minute to hold off the Captains furious come-from-behind effort.

The game began as a back-and forth affair as CNU led St. Mary's, 18-16, midway through the first half. The Seahawks then went on a 12-2 run to take a 28-20 lead at halftime.

St. Mary's blew the game open early in the second half when junior Nick LaGuerre caught fire. LaGuerre knocked down four three-pointers early in the second half and ended with a team-high 23 points.

CNU Head Coach John Krikorian was ejected from the game following two back-to-back technical fouls called with 15:42 to play in the second half. Benefield then took over the game and fueled the Captains comeback effort.

"We were fired up after coach was thrown out," Benefield said following the game. "We knew we could make a run and we just started getting to the basket and making shots."

Benefield has now scored 1,730 career points, and is just six behind Antoine Sinclair for fifth place on the school's all-time scoring list.

"It was emotional tonight with it being Senior Night," Benefield continued. "I had my parents and family and friends here and just wanted to make them proud. Now we have to bounce back Saturday at Marymount and play like we did in the second half for a full forty minutes "

Benefield and fellow senior Luc Atangana were honored during a pre-game ceremony just prior to tipoff.

Freshman Tim Daly was the only other CNU player to reach double figures with 11 points. The Captains were plagued by 13 turnovers, most coming in the late first half and early second half when the Seahawks built their lead. CNU is now 0-7 this season when trailing at the half, and the Captains conclude the regular season with a 10-3 record at the Freeman Center.

St. Mary's improves to 18-6 overall and 11-4 in CAC action. The Seahawks moved into a second-place tie in the conference standings with Mary Washington by virtue of the road victory.

The loss gives the Captains a 16-8 overall record and an 8-7 mark in the Capital Athletic Conference. Salisbury's win over Marymount, 62-56, pulls the Sea Gulls into a fourth-place tie with the Captains heading into the final day of the regular season Saturday.

The Captains conclude the season at Marymount Saturday with tipoff set for 4 p.m. in Arlington, VA.